


Our Bond

by TheSassyGreninja



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime)
Genre: Gen, idk yet, more to be added later - Freeform, possible mentions of aura
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 13:41:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 38
Words: 77,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28849983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSassyGreninja/pseuds/TheSassyGreninja
Summary: After failing yet again to find the perfect trainer, Froakie gets an idea. He hadn't had any luck in Kalos, but perhaps he would find the one in another region. In the end, he finds himself in the Kanto region where he's discovered by a small boy with black hair.Finding an unfamiliar Pokemon while playing in the forest isn't exactly how seven-year-old Ash Ketchum imagined he would be spending his Saturday. He certainly didn't expect that the new Pokemon would take to him so quickly either, knowing how temperamental the wild ones could be. But then again, when has his life ever been normal?
Relationships: Satoshi | Ash Ketchum & Original Female Character(s), Satoshi | Ash Ketchum & Satoshi no Gekkouga | Ash Ketchum's Greninja
Comments: 184
Kudos: 304





	1. The Strange Pokemon

"Be careful out there, Ash! Stay close to the trail or else you might get lost!" Delia Ketchum called after her seven-year-old son, Ash, as he raced out the door. "And make sure you're back home in time for dinner!" 

"I will, Mom! Bye!" Ash shouted over his shoulder. 

He raced down the path that led out of his hometown of Pallet Town and into Viridian Forest, ignoring the curious looks he was receiving from the few passing trainers. The sun was shining brightly overhead with just a few fluffy-looking clouds in the clear blue sky. A gentle breeze was blowing through the trees, a cool spring wind. All in all, it was the perfect day to see lots of Pokemon in the forest. 

For as long as he could remember, Ash had always dreamed of the day he would finally become a Pokemon trainer. Unfortunately, at only seven years old, he was still three years shy of reaching the legal age to receive his license. It was one of the many rules of life that Ash still didn't understand. Was there really such a big difference between being seven and being ten? From what he could see, the only thing ten-year-olds could do was recite facts on Pokemon a little more quickly. But the rules were the rules, so he had no choice but to accept his fate and wait. 

But even so, it wasn't all that bad. He might not have been allowed to catch or train any Pokemon yet, but that didn't mean he wasn't allowed to watch them. So every chance he could get, Ash would venture out into Viridian Forest, the closest route to his hometown. A few of the smaller Pokemon in the forest, such as the Caterpie and Rattata, had even befriended him, although he made sure to stay out of the way of the more dangerous Beedrill and Spearow. The rest of the Pokemon didn't exactly make an attempt to be friendly, but nor did they go out of their way to attack him either. Ash supposed that as long as he didn't bother them too much, there was no need for them to bother him. 

As he walked through the forest, Ash gazed around in awe at his surroundings. It had become something of a game for him to see if he could spot any new Pokemon, even though he hadn't seen any in quite a while. Viridian Forest wasn't exactly known for its wide variety of species, which he supposed made sense considering it was the first route trainers from Pallet Town would have to traverse upon starting their journeys. Rounding a corner, he noticed a Pidgey that he had befriended nibbling on a berry. He waved excitedly as he ran up to her, and she chirped happily in response. 

"Hey, Pidgey! How's it going today?" Ash asked cheerfully, sitting cross-legged on the ground. 

"Pidgey! Pidge!" the small bird Pokemon replied. 

"Isn't it a nice day out? I almost thought I wouldn't be able to come. The weatherman said it was supposed to rain this weekend, and Mom doesn't like me going out in bad weather. She says I might get sick or hurt," he told Pidgey, pulling a face. "I mean, come on, really? It's not like I'd go out without a jacket and a little rain wouldn't hurt me." 

Pidgey chirped something in reply, and he chuckled. "Yeah, I know she just worries about me. I just wish she wasn't so over-the-top sometimes, you know?" 

"Pidge, pidgey," she replied, patting him sympathetically with her wing. 

After chatting with Pidgey for a few more minutes, Ash got back up and continued on his way. There were only a few hours left until he had to return home for dinner, and he was determined to make the most of every minute. 

Upon rounding another corner on the trail, however, he came to a stop as he found himself face to face with an unfamiliar Pokemon. This Pokemon was a small blue frog-like creature with a strange white substance around its neck. Ash stared at it for a few moments, racking his brain to try to figure out what sort of Pokemon it was. He certainly didn't remember seeing it in any of the books he studied at school. 

But the shock of seeing such an obviously foreign Pokemon in Viridian Forest wasn't even the strangest part of the situation. The moment he had locked eyes with it, Ash had felt a tug on his chest, almost as if something were drawing him to the strange newcomer. He wasn't sure if the new Pokemon had felt it as well, but it hadn't run away from him or attacked him yet, so perhaps there was a chance. 

"Er...hi there," he said finally, feeling a bit awkward. "Sorry to bother you. I'll get out of your way now." 

" _No, it's alright. I'm not doing anything important anyway,_ " the unfamiliar Pokemon replied in an obviously male voice. 

Ash's eyes widened. "Wait a minute! You can talk?" he exclaimed. 

The Pokemon gave him an odd look. " _Er, yes...all Pokemon can talk, you know._ "

"No, no. I mean, yeah, I know you can all talk," Ash amended, waving his hands about sporadically as he tried to explain himself. "It's just that, well, I've never met a Pokemon that I could understand before. How did you do that?" 

" _Oh. I, er, I don't know, actually,_ " the Pokemon replied, blinking with a look of confusion on his face. " _I'm not doing anything, if that's what you're wondering. So you say you've never been able to understand Pokemon before?"_

Ash shook his head and smiled. "No, but it's pretty cool to know that I can understand you, er...sorry, what's your name? I don't think I've ever seen a Pokemon like you around here." 

" _My name's Froakie, and that doesn't surprise me. I'm the water-type starter for new Pokemon in the Kalos region,_ " the newly-named Froakie answered. 

"Kalos?" Ash repeated, startled. "But that's really far from here and you don't look like you have a trainer. How did you get all the way here? And why are you in Kanto anyway if you're supposed to be a starter Pokemon for Kalos trainers?" 

" _I stowed away on a plane, and as for why I'm here, I wasn't exactly having good luck with the trainers in Kalos. None of them were the right one for me. So I came here to Kanto to see if I'd have better luck here,_ " Froakie told him. 

"What's wrong with your old trainers?" Ash asked curiously, tilting his head to the side. "Were they mean or something?" 

" _No. Well, some of them, yes,_ " Froakie answered, shuddering slightly. He shook his head and continued, " _Others of them were alright. But they just weren't what I wanted."  
_

"Oh." Ash didn't know what else to say to that. He had heard of trainers choosing their Pokemon, of course, but he had never heard of Pokemon choosing their trainers. "Sorry to hear that." 

" _It's alright,_ " Froakie assured him. 

"So how many trainers have you had anyway?" he asked. 

" _Five so far. The latest one brought me back to Professor Sycamore's lab just a few days ago,_ " the blue frog told him. At Ash's puzzled look, he added, " _Professor Sycamore's the one who gives out starter Pokemon to new trainers in Kalos. Kind of like, er..who's the guy who works here?_ " 

"Oh! You mean Professor Oak!" Ash exclaimed, feeling a sudden burst of understanding. "So was Professor Sycamore the guy who sent you here?" 

At that, Froakie looked a little sheepish. " _Actually, no. To tell you the truth, I kind of snuck off on my own. I'm sure he's looking for me by now, though._ " 

"You really snuck all the way from Kalos all by yourself?" Ash asked, his eyes widening in amazement. Froakie nodded, a slight grin on his face. "Awesome. That's so cool! You must be really strong and brave if you made it here without help." 

The little blue frog blushed. " _Well, thank you...er...?"_

"My name's Ash," the raven-haired boy introduced himself, silently kicking himself for forgetting to mention his own name. "I want to become a Pokemon trainer and travel the world someday! But I'm only seven, so I can't go on a journey for three years." 

" _It's nice to meet you, Ash,_ " Froakie replied, giving him a warm smile. 

"I can't wait until I get to go on my journey. Then I can make friends with all sorts of Pokemon!" Ash said cheerfully. "I'm going to challenge the Indigo league first, and then I want to explore the other regions. Maybe I'll go to Kalos next. What's it like in Kalos? Is it nice there?" 

" _It's very nice,_ " the frog Pokemon answered, chuckling. " _The people and Pokemon there are very friendly–most of them anyway._ " 

The longer Ash spent with Froakie, the more he liked the little blue frog. He was funny and friendly. But at the same time, Ash couldn't help feeling a pang of regret. While he would have loved nothing more than to take Froakie home with him, he knew he wasn't allowed to have a Pokemon yet. Besides, Froakie probably wouldn't want to go with a kid who wasn't even allowed to be a trainer yet. 

" _What's the matter, Ash?_ " Froakie asked, looking at him in concern. 

"Nothing, really," Ash sighed. "It's just that...well, I really liked playing with you today, but I have to go home soon. Mom's going to get worried if I'm not back in time for dinner." 

Froakie blinked. " _Oh. Is that all? Why don't I just come with you, then?_ " 

Ash jerked his head up in surprise. "You-you want to? Really?" he stammered. "But...but I'm not a trainer yet. I'm not even allowed to have a Pokemon. And didn't you say you wanted to find a trainer anyway?" 

" _That's okay! I don't mind waiting. I want to go with you anyway,_ " Froakie replied cheerfully. " _And don't worry about me being there. You're not allowed to catch me yet, true, but that doesn't mean I can't stay with you._ " 

"Really? Sure, then, you can come with me," Ash agreed, his spirits soaring. Glancing up at the sky, he added, "Let's go home first, and then I'll take you to meet Professor Oak tomorrow! He's really smart and knows a lot about Pokemon. You'll really like him. And my mom makes really great food too. She'll make you something to eat if you're hungry." 

" _Well, I can't say no to that,_ " Froakie chuckled, hopping onto the boy's shoulder. " _Alright then, Ash. Lead the way._ " 


	2. Introductions

Delia was outside in the garden with her housekeeper, Mr. Mime, when Ash and Froakie arrived back at his house. She was dressed in a dirty-looking coat and her hands were caked in mud and dirt. Upon hearing her son's footsteps, she looked up, her eyes widening in surprise as she took in the sight of the unfamiliar Pokemon. Abandoning her gardening, she walked over to Ash and Froakie, careful to keep her hands to herself. 

"Ash, what's going on? Where did you find that Pokemon?" Delia asked a stern note in her voice. "You know you're too young to have a Pokemon yet, young man." 

"I know, Mom, but Froakie said he wanted to come with me," Ash protested. "I met him while I was playing out in the forest. He's really cool! He told me that he came all the way from Kalos!" 

" _Hi, there,_ " Froakie piped up, giving the auburn-haired woman a friendly wave. At the gesture, Delia's stern expression softened. 

"Hello there...er, Froakie? Did you say his name was Froakie?" she asked, glancing over at her son. Ash nodded fervently and she smiled. "Right, then. It's very nice to meet you, Froakie. If what my son is telling me is true, then you must have traveled a long way to get to Pallet Town all the way from Kalos? Why don't you come inside? I'm about to start cooking dinner for me and Ash, and I'll make you some of my famous Pokemon food." 

" _Really?_ " Froakie asked, his eyes shining. " _If it's okay, do you think you could make some food specifically for water-types? That's my favorite._ " 

"He wants to know if you can make him something for water-types," Ash translated for his mother. "Froakie's the water-type starter for Kalos trainers, so he really, really likes food for water Pokemon." 

"In that case, I have the perfect recipe to use," Delia agreed, reaching out and petting Froakie's cheek gently. The little blue frog smiled contentedly, leaning into the touch. 

"Mime, mime," Mr. Mime said, walking up to the trio. "Mime, mime mime, mime." 

Delia's eyes lit up. "Good idea, Mimey. Ash, why don't you show Froakie your room while Mimey and I start dinner?" 

"Does that mean Froakie can stay with us?" Ash asked, looking up at his mother with wide eyes. 

"I suppose I don't see why not," the auburn-haired woman agreed, ruffling her son's hair. "As long as you promise to always take good care of Froakie. Can you do that, Ash?" 

"I can! I promise I'll take really good care of him!" he said, nodding frantically. 

"Very well, then," Delia replied kindly. "If you're serious about taking care of Froakie, then he can stay with us." 

"YAY!" Ash shouted, then covered his mouth in embarrassment. "Oops. Sorry." 

" _Yay!_ " Froakie cheered as well, though not quite as loudly as Ash. 

Delia chuckled, smiling fondly at the two new friends. "And Froakie, I expect you to take good care of my son as well, alright? Make sure you look after him." 

" _You got it!_ " the little blue frog agreed, giving a thumbs-up. 

"Mom! I don't _need_ anyone to look after me. I can take care of myself!" Ash complained. Why was his mother always insisting that someone look after him? He had never gotten into any trouble before. 

"Of course you can, dear," Delia replied, ruffling his hair again. "Now, why don't you go show Froakie your room? I'll call you both down when it's time for dinner." 

"Okay, Mom. See you later!" Ash called over his shoulder. 

He raced upstairs to his room, careful not to jostle Froakie too much. The last thing he wanted to do was accidentally knock his new friend over. Of course, it was impossible to keep Froakie from bouncing up and down once in a while, but the frog Pokemon didn't appear to mind too much. 

"This one's my room right here. It's not that big, but it's really comfortable," Ash announced, coming to a stop at a door to the left of the top of the stairs. 

Unfortunately, upon opening the door to his room, he was immediately greeted by another issue altogether. The floor of his bedroom was covered in books and toys, and his bed hadn't been made. There was a pile of clean laundry in a basket that he hadn't put away yet. Ash hesitated for a moment in the doorway, feeling his face heat up. He didn't necessarily mind his room being in this state, but that didn't mean he wanted everyone to see just how much of a mess it was. 

"Er...so, yeah...it's kind of messy in here, I guess," he said sheepishly, stepping over a Squirtle plush. "Sorry. Mom keeps telling me to clean it up, but I always forget." 

" _It's okay, Ash. It looks like you have a lot of fun in here,_ " Froakie remarked, taking a look around the toy-cluttered floor. 

"Yeah, it's awesome!" Ash agreed happily. He picked up an old coloring book. "Look, this is the coloring book I got for my birthday when I was six. It's all filled out now, but Mom said she'll get me a new one soon. And that book over there has a bunch of Pokemon puzzles. That one next to it is the one I use to draw Pokemon for school. And the ones on the shelf are old Pokemon legends, but I haven't read them yet. Mom tried to read me one once, the, uh...something about some guy in some place called Rome?" 

" _Rome? Do you mean Rota?_ " Froakie asked, looking rather amused. 

"Rota! Yeah, that's it! The Kingdom of Rota!" he exclaimed as the name finally flashed back into his mind. "I don't really know how it goes, though. I remember there was some sort of battle going on and I think they talked about a tree, but I didn't listen to what happened after that." 

For the next ten minutes, Ash continued showing Froakie around his room, explaining what all of the various toys were. To his delight, Froakie appeared to be enjoying his tour, asking questions about every single toy, book, or puzzle. He even picked up a female Nidoran plush, his eyes lighting up as he felt how soft it was. Ash smiled brightly as Froakie snuggled up against the plush, happy that his new friend liked his toys as much as he did. 

" _This one is really soft! I've never seen one like this before. Most of my old trainers had plastic figures,_ " Froakie told him, pulling a face. 

"Actually, I used to have a Machamp action figure once, but I accidentally stepped on it," Ash admitted. 

" _I do have one question, though. How come all of the stuffed toys here are all Kanto Pokemon?_ " the frog Pokemon asked, looking up at him curiously. 

"Most of the shops around here only sell Kanto Pokemon plushes," he explained. "And Mom says it's too much trouble to drive to another town just for a stuffed toy from another region. She was going to buy me a Chikorita plush for my birthday next month, but I'm too old to be getting stuffed toys now. So she says she's got a surprise planned, but she won't tell me what it is." 

" _A surprise, really? Well, that definitely sounds exciting,_ " Froakie commented. 

Ash couldn't help agreeing with him. His birthdays were always exciting to look forward to, and the added mystery of exactly how they would be celebrating it this year only increased his feeling of anticipation. He just hoped that the surprise was the good kind and not the kind where Gary Oak snuck up behind him and pushed him into the lake. It hadn't even been summer when Gary had pushed him–it had been the middle of winter. 

Maybe the surprise would be that he was allowed to start traveling the world as a Pokemon trainer early. Ash grinned to himself, turning to look out the window as a flock of Pidgey flew by. Of course, the logical part of his mind knew that probably wasn't the case–but wouldn't it be something else if it was? 


	3. The Bond Explained

The following morning, Ash and Delia wasted no time in heading over to Professor Oak's laboratory to introduce him to Froakie. Professor Oak was famous around the world for his study of Pokemon, and they were certain that if anyone could give them more information about Froakie, it would be him. Froakie, for his part, was just excited about being able to see more of his newfound friend's hometown. 

"Just wait until you see the lab. It's so cool! Sometimes, trainers from Pallet Town leave their Pokemon with Professor Oak, so he has an entire san-sanctu–Mom, what's that word again?" Ash asked, turning to his mother. 

"Sanctuary, dear," Delia replied. 

"Sanctuary! Yeah, he has an entire sanctuary built for them. It has a habitat for every Pokemon type in the world! There's even a pond that you can play in," he told Froakie excitedly. 

" _Really?_ " Froakie asked, his eyes shining. 

"Yeah! We have to talk to Professor Oak first, but I'll show you around when we're done," Ash promised. "Just make sure you stay away from the woods on the far left corner. A trainer left his Nidoking there a few days ago, but he's not that nice. Professor Oak's the only one who can go over there without getting attacked. Even the other Pokemon don't want to go near him." 

" _Why do you think he's so bad-tempered?_ " the little blue frog asked, blinking. 

Ash shrugged. "I don't know. Professor Oak says he's just not used to being here yet. He says we should give him space until he has time to get used to everyone." 

When they entered the lab, Professor Oak was busy at work tending to a burn on an Eevee's leg. He looked up as they walked in, lifting his free hand in welcome. Ash grinned and raced over to his idol with Froakie on his shoulder. Delia followed more slowly, chuckling at her son's excitement. 

"Hi there, Eevee. Feeling alright?" Ash asked, petting the fox-like Pokemon's ears. Eevee barked happily, rubbing her head against his hand. 

"Hello, Ash, hello, Delia. I've just been healing this Eevee's burn," Professor Oak greeted them. His gaze fell on Froakie, and his eyes widened. "Oh, and what do we have here? A Froakie! You must be the one Professor Sycamore called me about last night." 

Ash and Froakie blinked in surprise. "You mean you already knew that Froakie was here, Professor?" 

"Not exactly, Ash. Professor Sycamore called me last night to tell me that a Froakie had gone missing from his lab. He says that this Froakie is known for being a bit of a troublemaker, but when none of the gym leaders in Kalos could find him either, he decided to see if Froakie had somehow made it to another region," the Kanto researcher explained. 

"Froakie's not a troublemaker!" Ash said indignantly, not liking the way Professor Oak had described his new friend. "I met him yesterday, and he's been really nice!" 

" _Thank you, Ash,_ " Froakie said. 

"I have to agree with Ash," Delia spoke up, a frown on her face. "Froakie played with my son all last night, and they had a wonderful time. Are you sure he's as much of a troublemaker as Professor Sycamore says he is?" 

"Well, I don't really know too much about Froakie myself. Augustine just told me that he has a history of running away from or disobeying his trainers until they're forced to return him," Professor Oak explained. 

"Well, I'm sure Froakie must act that way for a good reason," Delia argued back. 

"He told me yesterday that he ran away because his trainers weren't what he was looking for. And he said that some of them were mean too," Ash piped up. "Froakie's a really great Pokemon, Professor. I promise he's not a troublemaker." 

"It's alright, Ash. I believe you," Professor Oak said kindly. "But we should probably call Professor Sycamore anyway to let him know that Froakie's been found. I'm sure he'll be relieved to know that he's alright." 

"But what if he makes me send Froakie back?" Ash asked worriedly. 

He knew he didn't have any right to keep Froakie, not since he wasn't even allowed to be a trainer yet. Technically, Froakie wasn't even supposed to be all the way here in Kanto; he was supposed to be in Kalos, working with a trainer to become stronger. But he couldn't help himself. It was difficult to say why, but Ash couldn't shake off the feeling that Froakie belonged with him. The connection he had felt when he locked eyes with the Kalos water-type the previous day was still as strong as ever.

And Froakie hadn't run away from him either. He had chosen to come with Ash despite only having known him for a couple of hours at the time. That had to mean he felt the connection as well, didn't it? 

"I can't promise that he won't, Ash. Froakie is meant to be under Professor Sycamore's care, not mine," Professor Oak said gently. "And don't forget, you're still too young to become a trainer. But if he sees how happy Froakie is with you, then perhaps he'll be willing to make an exception." 

"Okay," he agreed sadly, feeling a twinge at the thought of losing his new friend so soon after meeting him. 

" _No!_ " Froakie cried out suddenly. " _No, I won't go back to Kalos! I don't care what Professor Sycamore says! I don't want to go back! I want to stay with Ash!_ " 

"Froakie? What's the matter?" the Kanto professor asked, sounding concerned. 

"He says he doesn't want to go back to Kalos," Ash translated. "He said he wants to stay here with me." 

Professor Oak blinked. "You mean to tell me that you can–?" he started to ask, then broke off, shaking his heaad. "Never mind that right now. I'm sure that Froakie would be very happy with you, Ash, but that doesn't change the fact that it's ultimately Professor Sycamore's decision." 

"But that's not fair!" the small boy protested. "How come Professor Sycamore gets to do whatever he wants and force Froakie to go back to Kalos? Is it just because he's an adult?" 

"Ash–" Delia began gently, but he just cut her off. 

"No! I'm tired of adults always acting like they know better just because they're older!" Ash burst out angrily. "You don't even care how Froakie feels! He just said that he doesn't want to go back, but you're going to let Professor Sycamore make him go back anyway! He's not going to be happy if he goes back to Kalos, he told me himself! Why don't you care about what _Froakie_ wants?" 

Silence filled the lab after his outburst. Ash stared down at his feet, resentment and guilt fighting for control over his emotions. He knew that he had been rude, but he was too angry to care. Just because Professor Sycamore was an adult didn't mean that he knew what was best for Froakie. Only Froakie knew what was best for himself, and if he knew that he wouldn't be happy in Kalos, then who was anyone else to disagree with him? 

"Sorry," he muttered, still staring at the tips of his sneakers. 

"It's alright, Ash. Believe me, I completely understand how you feel," Professor Oak said reassuringly. "But I don't think you'll have anything to worry about. Augustine is a good man. He'll want Froakie to be happy just as much as you do." 

Ash just nodded, not wanting to get himself into trouble. But he wasn't sure whether he believed Professor Oak or not. If Professor Sycamore really cared about Froakie being happy, then why hadn't he given him to any good trainers yet? He thought for a moment, then dared to voice the question aloud. 

"If Professor Sycamore really cares about Froakie, then why did he give him to so many mean trainers?" he demanded. 

"An extremely unfortunate mistake. You see, we can't tell what sort of trainer every young boy or girl who comes to pick their first Pokemon will turn out to be," the aging researcher explained. "We expect that the Pokemon will be treated well, but that doesn't always turn out to be the case." 

"Why can't you tell?" Ash asked, tilting his head to the side. 

"Unfortunately, we usually don't have much of an impression of them," Professor Oak told him. Seeing that Ash was still confused, he elaborated, "Think of it like picking out snacks. Sometimes, you'll see one that looks good. But when you actually eat it, you realize that it tastes horrible. It's the same way with trainers. When Professor Sycamore or I give out starter Pokemon to new trainers, we believe that they're going to be treated with kindness. But sometimes, our assumptions turn out to be wrong." 

"I...I think I get it now," Ash said, narrowing his eyes. "So you're saying that Professor Sycamore didn't mean for Froakie to get hurt?" 

"That's right," Professor Oak confirmed. "Now, should we give him a call now?" 

He thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, sure. Okay." 

It didn't take long for Professor Oak to get ahold of his colleague in the Kalos region. The video phone hadn't even been ringing for more than two seconds when a man with long, wavy black hair dressed in a white lab coat picked up on the other end. This man, Ash supposed, must have been Professor Sycamore. He was considerably younger than Professor Oak, so Ash figured he must have only started working as a professor a short while ago. The moment he saw Froakie on Ash's shoulder, his face split into a wide, albeit slightly confused, smile. 

"Froakie! Thank goodness you're okay!" Professor Sycamore exclaimed. 

" _Hi there! I'm not coming back!_ " Froakie said cheerfully, waving a tiny white paw. 

"Augustine, I would like to introduce you to my good friend, Delia Ketchum, and her son, Ash," Professor Oak introduced them. "Delia, Ash, this is my coworker, Professor Sycamore. He works as a researcher in Kalos, as you already know." 

"Hello, Professor Sycamore. It's nice to meet you," Delia greeted the man on the other end of the connection. 

"Hi," Ash piped up, waving. 

"Hello, Delia, hello, Ash," Professor Sycamore replied kindly. "It's a pleasure to meet you both. Have you become a trainer yet, Ash?" 

He shook his head. "No, not yet. I'm not old enough. But I'll be ten in three years, and then I'm going to go on my very own Pokemon journey! And I'm going to travel all over the world and make friends with all sorts of Pokemon!" 

"That sounds wonderful, Ash. I'm sure you'll make lots of great friends," the Kalos researcher said warmly. 

"Ash here is the one who found Froakie yesterday," Professor Oak explained. 

"Is that so?" Professor Sycamore asked, looking interested. 

Ash nodded fervently. "Yeah! I was playing out in Viridian Forest when I ran into Froakie. I thought he would be mad at me for bothering him, but he was really nice! He told me all about himself and how he got all the way to Kanto all by himself. Isn't that so cool? Froakie's a really brave and strong Pokemon, Professor." 

At that, the dark-haired man chuckled. "Well, Ash, I–" 

"Oh, yeah! And then we went home and Mom made dinner for me and Froakie, and I got to show Froakie my room!" he continued, too excited to care that he had just interrupted an adult. "And we spent all night last night playing with my toys. We even finished an entire hundred-piece puzzle together!" 

"Ash here was wondering if you would allow Froakie to stay here in Pallet Town," Professor Oak spoke up. "I know he's meant for trainers in Kalos, but seeing them together today, it does appear that Froakie is happy with Ash. I have full faith that Ash will treat him with all the kindness in the world." 

"Please, Professor Sycamore, can Froakie stay?" Ash begged. From his perch on his shoulder, Froakie stared at the video screen with wide, hopeful eyes. "Please? I promise I'll take really good care of him!" 

Professor Sycamore had a strange look on his face, but it didn't seem as though he were angry. Instead, he looked as though he were thinking deeply about something. Ash felt a twinge of hope in his chest. So far, his request hadn't been refused yet, so did that mean Professor Sycamore was considering letting Froakie stay? 

"Ash, you were talking earlier as if you know what Froakie is saying. Can you understand him?" the dark-haired man asked. 

"Yeah, I can! I don't know how I can do it because I can't understand any other Pokemon, but I can understand Froakie," Ash said, nodding. "Froakie told me that he was just talking normally, so I know it isn't Tele-Tele–" 

"Telepathy," Delia supplemented. 

"Telepathy! Yeah, I know it isn't Telepathy, but then I don't know how I'd be able to understand Froakie," he finished. "But it's really cool! I've always wanted to be able to talk to Pokemon." 

Professor Sycamore chuckled. "Well, in that case, I would be more than happy to allow Froakie to stay with you, Ash." 

"Really?" Ash asked hopefully, hardly daring to believe it in case it was some sort of horrible joke. But Professor Sycamore just nodded, smiling. "Yay! Froakie gets to stay, Froakie gets to stay!" 

" _Yay!_ " Froakie cheered, jumping and practically hugging the life out of the boy in celebration. 

The young boy was overjoyed by the fact that his new friend would be allowed to stay with him. His thoughts didn't go beyond a few plans to start playing with Froakie as soon as possible. But Professor Oak and Delia's did. 

"Professor, not that I'm not grateful to you for allowing my son to keep Froakie, but what does the fact that he can understand Froakie have to do with it?" Delia asked, her voice filled with bewilderment. 

"Ah, that will take a bit more explaining. To start, have you ever heard of the bond phenomenon?" Professor Sycamore asked, to which everyone shook their heads. "That doesn't surprise me, actually. It's not a very well-known concept even here in Kalos, and this region has the only recorded case of it in history. Of course, that was several hundred millenia ago." 

"How long is a millenia?" Ash piped up curiously. 

"One thousand years," the Kalos professor informed him. 

"Whoa," Ash breathed, feeling his head spin as he tried to comprehend just how massive that number was. "That's a really long time." 

"Indeed," Professor Sycamore agreed, smiling kindly at him. "So, as you might expect, we don't have a lot of information on it. What we do know is that it's an extremely rare gift that only the Froakie line possesses. When Froakie eventually becomes a Greninja–that's his evolutionary line's final stage–he'll be able to unlock this new power. During battles, his appearance will change and his strength will increase as his heart becomes one with his trainer's. Of course, it's only a temporary increase, but during these times, his power will be enough to rival that of a legendary Pokemon." 

"Wow. You can really do all that?" Ash asked in awe, turning to Froakie. 

" _You bet! Or, well, I will be able to someday. I'm not that strong yet. But soon,_ " the frog Pokemon answered, giving him a thumbs-up. 

"That does sound interesting, Professor, but I'm afraid I still don't understand why that would convince you to let Froakie stay here," Delia said, still frowning. "All Froakie needs is a trainer, right?" 

"Unfortunately, that's where things get a bit complicated. You see, just any old trainer isn't going to work. Each Froakie born with this ability is meant to be with a very specific trainer. They can choose to go with others, of course, but they'll never reach their full potential and they'll never quite feel as if they're meant to be there. I suspect that Ash is the one meant for Froakie," Professor Sycamore explained. 

"So...Ash and Froakie need to stay together?" Delia clarified. 

"It would be in their best interest, yes," Professor Sycamore replied with a nod. "Ash and Froakie are essentially two halves of the same whole. While they can certainly _exist_ without the other, they'll never be truly complete if they're to be separated. And now that they've found each other, if there ever comes a time when they are split apart, their natural instinct will be to do whatever they can to be reunited again." 

"I see," Delia murmured. She looked a bit worried, but she was smiling nonetheless. "Well, in that case, we would be more than happy to allow Froakie to stay with us." 

"Yay! Thanks, Professor, thanks, Mom!" Ash cheered. "Froakie, come on! I can show you around the lab now if you want. Let's go check out the pond together!" 

He raced out toward the sanctuary with Froakie on his shoulder, heading in the direction of the water-type habitat. Of course, he didn't understand a lot of what Professor Sycamore had said about him and Froakie being two halves of the same whole, but that didn't matter much to him at that moment. He was just happy that Froakie was being permitted to stay with him–and that the Kalos researcher had turned out to be a nice person after all. 


	4. New Beginnings

Froakie quickly discovered that he much preferred the quiet of Pallet Town to the constant hustle and bustle of Lumiose City. That wasn't to say that he _hated_ Lumiose City–after all, it was still his hometown–but there were times when it was so loud, he couldn't even hear himself think. Of course, it made sense that it would be heavily populated. Not only was it a popular tourist attraction, but it was also the largest city in all of Kalos. Still, it was hard not to find the constant noise as well as the sheer number of trainers and Pokemon roaming around almost suffocating in a way. 

More importantly, Ash was in Pallet Town, not Lumiose City. That was enough of a reason for Froakie not to go back even if he _had_ been able to tolerate the never-ending cacophony a bit better. 

He had learned quite a bit about his future trainer over the past three and a half weeks since he had officially moved to Pallet Town. For one, he learned that Ash's favorite color fluctuated between red, green, and blue depending on what mood he was in. If anyone tried to guess what his favorite color was, he would immediately disagree and claim that it was something entirely different. Whether he was doing that just for the sake of being a contrarian, Froakie had no idea, but it was amusing nonetheless. 

For another, Froakie had also learned that the young boy had initially been planning on picking Squirtle as his first Pokemon. Now that he would have Froakie, however, his mother and Professor Oak had suggested considering a different starter, seeing as it wouldn't make sense to start with two water-types on his team. Froakie was a bit puzzled as to why Ash would apparently be getting two starters, but he wasn't going to complain at the prospect of making another friend. Ash, for his part, hadn't necessarily minded not being able to pick Squirtle, but he was having trouble deciding which one he preferred between Charmander and Bulbasaur. 

Knowing how seriously Froakie took his training, Professor Sycamore had sent Ash a few tips and instructions on helping the Bubble Frog Pokemon with his regimen. Ash quickly proved himself to be a natural when it came to battling, able to come up with combinations at the drop of a hat. Some of them sounded rather ridiculous, even to Froakie, but when they were actually put into practice, they worked exactly the way they were meant to. Technically, he wasn't meant to be training with Froakie yet, but Delia was rather lenient when it came to the rules and Mimey was nice enough to have a few practice matches with them. 

Of course, not everything about Pallet Town was completely ideal. Gary Oak, Professor Oak's grandson and a classmate of Ash's, made quick work of making an enemy of Froakie. A few days before Ash's eighth birthday, Froakie and the messy-haired boy were playing at a nearby park when they were approached by a boy with mahogany hair and black eyes. He was a few inches taller than Ash, and he wore a smirk that sent several unpleasant thoughts through Froakie's mind. 

"Well, well, if it isn't Ashy-boy," the newcomer said, a teasing note in his voice. 

"Ugh, what do _you_ want, Gary?" Ash asked, rolling his eyes. 

"You have a Pokemon with you," the newly-named Gary announced. 

Froakie rolled his eyes and Ash retorted, "Good job, Gary, you know what a Pokemon is. Do you want a trophy or something?" 

"You're not supposed to have a Pokemon yet, Ashy-boy. It's against the rules," Gary said smugly. "I'm going to tell Grandpa that you're breaking the rules." 

Froakie scowled, not liking the way this boy was speaking to his friend. He reminded him far too much of some of the more unpleasant trainers he'd had during his life. They thought they knew better than everyone (for various ridiculous reasons) and talked down to anyone whom they deemed to be weak or stupid, which was very nearly everyone. Froakie suspected that having Professor Oak as a grandfather had done a lot to fuel Gary's attitude. 

"First of all, Professor Oak already knows about Froakie," Ash shot back. "Second of all, why do you even care if I have a Pokemon? Afraid I'll turn out to be a better trainer than you or something?" 

Gary snorted. "Oh please, Ash, as if you could ever be a better trainer than me. Just you wait and see. I've got more talent in one finger than you do in your entire body. I'm going to become the world's greatest Pokemon trainer, and you'll just–" 

"Blah, blah, blah, do you ever stop talking? Come on, Froakie, let's get out of here." 

Before Gary could say anything else, Ash jumped to his feet, allowing Froakie to climb back onto his shoulder. Without bothering to look back, they turned around and strode away from the park. Froakie was glad that Ash had chosen to leave at that moment; a minute longer, and he probably wouldn't have been able to resist the urge to send a Water Pulse at Gary's face. How was it that two boys who were the same age and from the same town could be so different from each other? For that matter, how could Gary be so unpleasant when Professor Oak was one of the kindest people Froakie had ever met? 

"What an idiot," Ash muttered once they were a safe distance away. "World's greatest Pokemon trainer, yeah right. More like the world's greatest pain in the neck." 

" _Has he always been like that?_ " Froakie asked. 

"Not really. He used to be nice once. I don't know why he isn't anymore," his future trainer admitted. "One day, he started acting like he was better than everyone. But before that, we actually used to be friends." 

Froakie let out a sympathetic sigh, patting Ash's back gently. " _Don't worry. An idiot like that isn't worth your time. You'll find other friends–real ones._ " 

"Yeah, I guess so," Ash agreed glumly. He brightened again as he added, "But hey, let's look on the bright side. My birthday is in a few days! We can finally find out what my mom has planned for it!" 


	5. The Aura Guardian

Lucario had no idea what was happening. 

The last conscious memory he had was of finding his old master, Sir Aaron, on the grounds just outside Cameron Palace. Two massive armies were on the verge of clashing–for what reasons, he hadn't known–and the fighting almost certainly would have destroyed their kingdom. He had gone after Sir Aaron in the hopes that his master would be able to think of a way to stop the fighting. 

But instead, the unthinkable had happened. Sir Aaron had denounced Lucario as his student, claiming that he had abandoned the kingdom and swearing to never return. Not wanting to believe a word of it, Lucario had chased after his mentor, only to find himself sealed within the staff the Aura Guardian always carried with him. His last sight had been of Sir Aaron fleeing the palace grounds before his vision faded and unconsciousness swept over his mind. 

Now, however, he suddenly found himself jolted awake as someone with an aura extremely similar to that of his master's came in close enough proximity to the staff to rouse him. As Lucario's mind cleared, he looked through the confines of the jewel to the outside world. His view of it was extremely poor, as he was only able to make out a few faint outlines. But, even so, that didn't matter. He didn't need crystal-clear vision to be able to see the aura of the people outside. 

His attention focused on a child not too far from where he–or rather, where the staff–sat. The child was still small, only about seven, maybe eight years old if Lucario had to take a guess, with messy-looking hair and a rather thin stature. There was also an odd-looking creature on the child's shoulder. Lucario assumed that this creature was a Pokemon, but he couldn't recall ever seeing one like it in his life. A woman stood next to the child; was she his mother, perhaps? 

He shook his head, trying to push his thoughts aside. Worrying about who the child and his companions were could wait until later–more specifically, until he had gotten himself out of the staff. Calling upon the skills his former master had taught him, he began to draw some of the child's aura toward himself, grinning in triumph as he felt the staff's hold on him gradually beginning to weaken. Just a few more minutes, and he would finally be free. 

* * *

Ash stood off to the side with Froakie and Delia, away from the prying eyes of the other guests at Cameron Palace. The birthday surprise his mother had planned for him had been just as incredible as she had promised and then some. Somehow, Delia had managed to arrange for them to take a trip to the Kingdom of Rota, where they were hosting some sort of tournament in honor of Sir Aaron's memory. Not having paid much attention to Sir Aaron's story, Ash didn't really understand what the tournament was all about. He was just excited about getting to see a Pokemon battle in real life. 

The food from the afterparty wasn't half-bad either, he thought to himself as he munched on a chocolate eclair. Of course, he still thought his mother's cooking was far better, but the cooks at Cameron Palace definitely knew what they were doing. Ash was more impressed by the fact that they had managed to cook as much food as they had in one day. It must have taken ages to get everything ready. 

"What do you think, Ash?" Delia asked, smiling down at her son. 

"It's awesome!" Ash exclaimed, staring around in awe at the massive castle. "This place is so big! I think it's even bigger than our house, Mom!" 

" _It is pretty nice,_ " Froakie piped up from his shoulder. " _I could do with a few less people around, though._ " 

Ash patted his friend's head. "Sorry, Froakie. But we'll be going back to our hotel room in a bit, and then we can play together! Just you and me. Oh yeah, and Mom can play with us too." 

The little frog seemed to be about to answer when a startled cry suddenly split the air. Spinning around in shock, Ash saw that the staff that had been presented to the tournament's winner, a girl of about sixteen with red hair and deep blue eyes, was trembling violently in her grasp. He glanced over at Lady Ilene, the current ruler of Rota, to see if she knew how to help, but she appeared to be as confused as everyone else. 

"What's going on?" Ash asked, staring at the staff in shock. "Mom, what's happening? Why is the staff shaking like that?" 

"I don't know, sweetheart. I've never seen anything like this happen either," Delia answered, her gaze still fixed on the trembling staff. "That poor girl. I do hope she's alright. This must be frightening for her." 

Ash opened his mouth to agree, but before he could say anything, he was cut off as a flash of light burst out from the tip of the staff. Instinctively, he shielded his eyes as the glow nearly blinded him. The startled exclamations from the other guests told Ash that they hadn't seen it coming either. 

"Ouch! My eyes!" 

"What _was_ that?" 

"What's going on here?!" 

"Since when does the staff do that?!" 

After a split second, however, the light finally died down. When the last of it faded away, Ash found himself staring at a strange Pokemon. This Pokemon had dog-like features with blue and black fur along most of its body, save for its chest, which was yellow. There was a spike on the Pokemon's chest, as well as on the back of its forepaws. The Pokemon's eyes were closed as well, but as he straightened up–on two legs, Ash was surprised to see–he slowly opened them to gaze around the palace. They were a deep red, which Ash found to be incredibly fascinating. He had never seen anyone with red eyes before. 

"Whoa," Ash breathed, staring at the strange Pokemon in awe. "Mom, who _is_ that?" 

"That must be Lucario," Delia murmured, still staring at the strange Pokemon in awe. 

"Lucario?" he repeated in confusion. 

"According to our legend, Lucario is a Pokemon that served under Sir Aaron," Lady Ilene replied, approaching the small boy and his family. "He–" 

But Ash didn't wait for her to finish her sentence. There was a new Pokemon for him to meet just a few feet from where he stood, and he wasn't about to pass up this opportunity. Ignoring his mother's cry for him to stop, he raced up to Lucario just as the dog-like Pokemon's gaze turned toward him. He was a few inches taller than Ash, but that didn't intimidate him in the slightest. As their eyes met, something in Lucario's face seemed to soften. 

"Hello!" Ash greeted Lucario happily. "My name's Ash. It's nice to meet you!" 

"Ash!" Delia cried out, worry lacing her voice. "What did I tell you about being careful? You don't just run up to a Pokemon you don't know." 

Ash stuck out his tongue. "Oh come on, Mom, if Lucario was actually dangerous, then how come he's allowed to stay in the castle? Anyway, I'm fine, see? Nothing happened." 

" _It's alright,_ " a deep voice sounded. Although Lucario's mouth hadn't moved at all from what Ash could see, there could be no doubt as to where it had come from. " _I'm not going to hurt your son, I promise. But if I may request, could we find some place private to talk? I think there's something we need to discuss._ " 


	6. Lucario's Story

Fortunately, Lady Ilene was kind enough to grant Lucario's request. After dismissing the rest of the guests for the evening, she summoned Lucario, Ash, Delia, and the odd blue frog back into the grand hall. The Aura Pokemon's attention flickered back and forth between the queen and the young messy-haired boy, the latter of whom was looking back at him with undisguised curiosity. Normally, the incessant staring would have grated on Lucario's nerves, but there was something about the childlike innocence on the young face that tugged at his heartstrings. 

Lady Ilene was the other object of his current fascination. She was a deadringer for his old queen, Lady Rin, and Lucario might have thought they were one and the same had the palace not been so greatly unfamiliar. Indeed, it was only Lady Ilene's garments that gave any hint as to where he was. Even after...well, however much time had passed, the royal wardrobe hadn't changed at all. 

"It's good to meet you, Lucario," Lady Ilene said, smiling kindly at him. Even her smile looked identical to Lady Rin's. "You've been asleep for a long time." 

" _I..._ " Lucario trailed off, not entirely sure what to say. A thousand questions ran through his head, but all he could do was stand there silently, trying to figure out the best way to start the conversation. 

Instead, however, Ash did it for him. As he was still struggling to regain the capacity to speak, the small boy piped up, "Were you really asleep in that staff this whole time?" 

Now, that was a question he _could_ answer. Turning back to Ash, Lucario replied, " _Yes, I was._ " 

"Wow. Did all the noise at the party wake you up?" Ash asked, his eyes wide. "Mom always tells me that I have to be quiet at night because people are sleeping. She keeps saying that if I make too much noise, I'll wake up the neighbors. But I've never actually woken them up." 

From atop his shoulder, the strange frog-like Pokemon snorted, " _No, but you did wake up Delia last week when you wouldn't stop jumping on the bed._ " 

"Hey, I wanted to see if I could bounce high enough to touch the ceiling," Ash complained. 

Lucario felt a twinge of amusement at the mental image. " _And did you?_ " 

The black-haired boy let out a disappointed sigh. "No." 

" _That's probably for the best,_ " the Aura Pokemon chuckled. " _And to answer your question, no, the noise at the party isn't what woke me up._ " 

"Really?" the child asked, frowning. "But if it wasn't the noise, then what woke you up? And why were you in that staff in the first place? It doesn't look that comfortable in there." 

" _Ah. That will take a little longer to explain,_ " Lucario murmured, feeling a small surge of anger at the thought of his master's betrayal. Shaking it off for a moment, he continued, " _Tell me, Ash, have you ever heard of aura?_ " 

Ash shook his head, but Delia interjected, "Yes, it's the essence of every living creature, isn't it?" 

Lucario nodded, sparing a quick glance at the auburn-haired woman. " _Yes, that is correct. Every living creature, humans and Pokemon alike, has a distinct aura. It gets a bit more complicated than that, but that's essentially the gist of it._ " 

"A very long time ago, there used to be people who would train in the ways of manipulating and controlling aura," Lady Ilene spoke up. "These trainers were known as Aura Guardians. But the practice has almost completely died out over time." 

Something about the queen's words caught Lucario's attention. " _Pardon me, Your Highness, but you said the practice has almost completely died out...over time? Just how long was I in that staff for?_ " 

At the question, Lady Ilene and Delia winced in sympathy while Ash and Froakie merely looked curious. Lucario felt a pang of trepidation; what was happening? Why did they look so distressed by his question? Surely it couldn't have been that long since he had been sealed away. 

"I'm not sure how to tell you this, Lucario, but you haven't walked in this palace for centuries," Lady Ilene answered at last. 

Lucario felt as though the ground had just been taken out from under his feet. He stumbled back as his legs grew weak, his pride being the only thing keeping them from completely giving out. His mind spun as he tried to make sense of what he had just been told. What was he supposed to think? It seemed so impossible, that he had been trapped inside that staff for hundreds of years, but he couldn't make himself believe that Lady Ilene would lie to him either. 

" _C-centuries?_ " he managed to croak out finally. 

His former master was long dead. Everyone he had ever known was long dead. All he had left now were a few echoes of the past in a queen identical to his own in every way except name and a small boy who bore an aura eerily similar to Sir Aaron's. 

The shock was too much to handle. Unable to bear it any longer, Lucario turned around and fled out of the grand hall.

* * *

"Lucario! Come back!" Ash cried out as the jackal Pokemon vanished out through the doors. 

Once again ignoring his mother's call for him to stop, he took off after Lucario, quickly telling Froakie to wait with Delia and Lady Ilene. Although quite short, he was considerably faster than most kids his age, and the open door leading to the courtyard gave a good idea as to where Lucario had gone. He raced outside and into the night, ignoring the chilly air as it nipped at him. As he ran through the courtyard, Ash spotted Lucario sitting near the fountain in the middle of the courtyard. 

Ash took a few steps toward the dog-like Pokemon, then stopped, realizing he hadn't thought about what he was going to say to Lucario. He didn't quite understand what was going on, but he knew that whatever it was had upset Lucario, and he didn't like that one bit. If there was something he could do to cheer him up, Ash would gladly do it. But the only problem was, he had no idea what that might be. 

Before he could make a decision as to whether to continue walking forward or not, Lucario spoke up, " _It's alright, Ash, you can come over here. I know it's you._ " 

"Oh, uh, okay," Ash agreed, feeling a twinge of embarrassment. 

Slowly, he made his way over to the stone bench where Lucario was sitting, taking a seat a few feet away from the jackal. Lucario didn't say a word but merely glanced at him for a split second. It was only a quick look, barely enough to mean anything, but it was more than enough for Ash to see the deep sadness in the red eyes. 

"How come you ran away?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. "Did we do something to upset you?" 

" _No. It's not because of anything any of you did,_ " Lucario answered, still not looking at him. 

"But then why?" Ash repeated. 

Instead of answering, Lucario just shook his head and stared down at his feet. Although he was making an obvious effort to appear calm, Ash could still see his arms shaking ever so slightly. He thought about reaching out to give the distraught Pokemon a hug, then immediately thought better of it, not knowing how something like that would be received. 

"You know, my mom always says it's best to talk about things that bother you," he prompted. "So you can tell me what's wrong. Maybe I can do something to help." 

" _Thank you, Ash, but I'm afraid this is a problem no one will be able to solve,_ " Lucario said softly, still staring down at his feet. He shook his head and lifted his head to gaze out at the fountain. 

Ash frowned. "Everyone always says stuff like that. How do you know nobody can help you if you don't even let them try?" 

For a moment, he thought that Lucario wouldn't answer. After a few minutes of silence, however, the dog Pokemon finally replied, " _This place...Cameron Palace, it used to be my home. I lived here for years while I was training to become an Aura Guardian. But now...now I can barely see my home anymore. Time has made it almost unrecognizable. Nothing looks the way I remember it looking. Everything and everyone that I ever knew is gone._ " 

So, Lucario was sad because his friends were gone and his home had changed. That made sense. Once again, Ash had to push down the urge to hug the unhappy Pokemon. 

"I know how you feel," he began finally. "Mom says it's always hard when the things or people we knew leave us. And change can be weird too. Pallet Town changed a lot over the years. A few months ago, they added a brand new park, and it still looks strange. And my dad passed away when I was four, but I still miss him. It's hard knowing that he won't be there when I start my journey in two years like we were planning when I was little." 

" _I'm sorry,_ " Lucario murmured. 

"Yeah," Ash said quietly. "But you know what? Even though Pallet Town has changed, it's still my home. And Cameron Palace is still your home too, isn't it? This is still the place you lived and trained as an Aura Guardian. Just because it looks different now doesn't mean that's changed. And I know how much you must miss your friends, but just because you might not be able to see or hear them anymore doesn't mean they're gone forever. Mom said something to me after Dad died...she said that a part of him exists within me. I think it could be the same for you too." 

" _You think so?_ " the jackal asked, glancing over at him. 

"I know so," Ash insisted, smiling brightly. "I think...I mean, I don't really know how to say it...but I think that even if things disappear and people die, as long as we don't forget them, then we'll never really lose them forever." 

He thought he could see a bit of moisture in Lucario's eyes, but the jackal Pokemon blinked it away before he could be sure. To Ash's surprise, Lucario reached out and placed a paw on his shoulder, a small smile cracking his features. 

" _Thanks, Ash. That...that does help, actually,_ " he said softly. 

Ash blushed slightly as he smiled happily at Lucario before deciding to change the subject. "So, you were telling us about aura earlier? Is that how you got out of the staff?" 

Lucario nodded. " _Yes, but it gets a little more complicated than that. Do you remember what I said earlier about everyone having a distinct aura?_ " Ash nodded uncertainly, wondering where this was going. " _Well, in your case, your aura is very similar to my former master, Sir Aaron's_." 

"Sir Aaron? You mean the guy everyone was celebrating today?" he asked, blinking until he remembered what Lady Ilene had told him. "Oh yeah, Lady Ilene told me that you used to serve under him or something like that." 

However, it seemed that only one part of what he had said had registered with Lucario. " _E-excuse me, but did you just say they were_ celebrating _him?_ " 

The anger radiating from Lucario was so powerful that Ash shrank back slightly. "Uh, y-yeah, why? What's wrong?" 

" _Sir Aaron does not deserve to be celebrated! He's a traitor who abandoned the kingdom!_ " Lucario fumed. Then, apparently seeing that he was frightening Ash, he took a deep breath and calmed down. " _I'm sorry, child. I'm not angry at you, I promise._ " 

"T-that's okay," Ash stammered nervously. "So was he the one who put you in the staff?" 

" _Yes. There were two armies about to clash, and the fighting would have destroyed Cameron Palace. I went after Sir Aaron because I was sure he would be able to stop them from fighting,_ " the dog-like Pokemon answered. " _But he told me that he had abandoned the kingdom and that he would never return. He then sealed me away in the staff before running away._ " 

"He just left you there?" Ash asked, shocked. Lucario nodded. "But...I don't get it. If Sir Aaron really ran away and left you, then how come everyone thinks he's a hero? There's even a really old story about him and some sort of tree...I don't really know how it goes because I didn't listen too well when my mom read it, though." 

" _That's probably the Tree of Beginning you're thinking of, and as for why everyone considers him to be a hero, your guess is as good as mine,_ " Lucario answered. He shut his eyes tightly, his shoulders hunched over. " _He was my master...I trusted him with my life...and he repaid me by abandoning me in that staff._ " 

Being only eight years old, Ash hadn't seen much and, therefore, couldn't quite relate to the feeling of being betrayed and abandoned. What he could relate to, however, was feeling sad or upset. Quickly, he moved forward and hugged Lucario, wrapping his arms around the jackal's hunched-over frame. Ash felt Lucario stiffen in surprise for a moment before reaching around to return the hug.

"It's okay. I'll be your new friend," Ash murmured. "And I promise I won't ever leave. I'll always be your friend forever." 

" _Thank you, Ash,_ " Lucario said quietly. " _You're a good kid. Don't ever lose that._ " 

"I won't," he promised. 

They remained that way for a few minutes longer, sitting by the moonlit fountain. Ash still had about a million questions running through his mind, but he was wise enough to realize they could wait until later. Right now, his only concern was making sure that his new friend was alright. 


	7. The Truth?

Eventually, Ash and Lucario returned to the castle, where the rest of the group was waiting patiently for them. At first, Delia was inclined to lecture her son about running off again, but when she saw how much he had managed to cheer up Lucario, she found that she didn't really have the heart. He had only been trying to help out a friend, and that wasn't something she could ever fault him for. Froakie, for his part, simply jumped back onto his favorite position on Ash's shoulder. 

"Welcome back, Lucario. Are you alright?" Lady Ilene asked, smiling kindly at the jackal Pokemon. 

" _I am, thank you,_ " Lucario replied, bowing slightly to her. To Delia, he added, " _Your son is a wonderful person, ah-_ " 

"Delia," the auburn-haired woman introduced herself. 

" _Delia,_ " Lucario repeated, nodding. " _Your son is a wonderful person, Delia. It's good to see that there are still some decent humans left in the world._ " 

"Lucario told me something," Ash piped up, remembering the story his new friend had told him. "He said that Sir Aaron abandoned him and ran away from the kingdom. But the legend says he's a hero. How come everyone thinks he's a hero if he's really a-a-what did you call him again, Lucario?" 

" _A traitor,_ " the dog-like Pokemon supplemented. 

"Yeah, that," Ash said, nodding. He looked back at Lady Ilene and Delia. "So why does everyone think Sir Aaron was a hero if he's really not?" 

Although he had only known Lucario for a little over an hour, there was something about the ancient Pokemon that Ash trusted wholeheartedly. If Lucario said that Sir Aaron had abandoned him and betrayed the kingdom, then he believed him. It only made sense, after all. Why would Lucario want to lie about something like that? Making up stories about friends was a terrible thing to do, and Ash refused to believe that Lucario would ever lie about anyone. 

Lady Ilene looked troubled. "The legend of Sir Aaron has been passed down for centuries. It's one of our kingdom's oldest tales. He's been known as the hero that saved the Kingdom of Rota for as long as any living person can remember." 

" _Well, then the legend is wrong,_ " Lucario snapped, looking rather agitated. " _Sir Aaron was no hero, and he certainly did not save anyone. He was a coward who ran away. I don't know who saved the kingdom, but it was not him. I suppose he must have come back to claim the credit, though._ " 

"Actually, as a matter of fact, no. According to the legend, Sir Aaron was never seen again after stopping the battle," the queen informed them. "The story says that a bright glow came from the Tree of Beginning that calmed the hearts and minds of the two armies." 

" _That doesn't prove that it was Sir Aaron, though,_ " Froakie piped up. Lucario nodded to him, grateful to have someone else in his corner. 

Ash translated Froakie's words for the two women and added, "Did anybody actually _see_ Sir Aaron do anything?" 

"No, not exactly." This time, it was Delia who answered. "According to the tale, Sir Aaron left the palace when the queen at the time, Lady Rin, refused to flee her kingdom when the armies attacked. Shortly after that was when the Tree of Beginning calmed everything down and stopped the battle." 

"But if nobody actually saw him do anything, then how do we all know for sure that he did it?" Ash argued back. "There were other people there too. How do you know it wasn't someone else who saved the kingdom?" 

An uncomfortable silence fell over the group after he had finished his series of questions. It was obvious that although Lady Ilene and Delia were reluctant to accuse Lucario of being wrong, they didn't entirely believe his version either. Ash felt a surge of frustration; why couldn't they see that Lucario was telling the truth? Was it really so hard to believe that a centuries-old tale might be wrong or at least horribly misinterpreted? 

Then another thought occurred to him. "Hey, wait a minute. Lucario served under Sir Aaron, right? What does the legend say happened to him during the battle?" 

"That part of the legend isn't entirely clear," Lady Ilene admitted. "All it really says is that he vanished at some point. We know that he ended up in Sir Aaron's staff somehow, but it was never mentioned how. But we do know that the staff was found abandoned after Sir Aaron saved the kingdom." 

Ash frowned. "So, what you're saying is that Lucario ended up in Sir Aaron's staff and nobody knows how he might have gotten in there?" he asked incredulously. "Isn't it obvious? Sir Aaron must have put him there. How else could it have happened? And why did he leave the staff anyway? Why didn't he just take it with him after he sealed Lucario?" 

"I'm afraid I don't know the answers to those questions," the blond-haired woman replied, frowning. 

Delia shook her head. "Alright, let me see if I have this straight. The legend says that Sir Aaron used the power of the Tree of Beginning to stop a battle from destroying the kingdom. But Lucario says that he ran away and abandoned everyone. Which is the right story, then? Surely they can't _both_ be true. We know the kingdom wasn't destroyed so someone must have stopped the fighting, but if it wasn't Sir Aaron, then who was it? And why does everyone believe it was Sir Aaron if nobody saw anything for certain?" 

" _Believe me, I'm asking myself the same questions,_ " Lucario muttered. 

"This is making my head hurt," Ash announced, making a show of rubbing his forehead. 

Nothing was making sense anymore. By Lucario's own account, Sir Aaron had fled the kingdom when the two armies were threatening to destroy it. But why, then, had he abandoned Lucario after sealing him away? Surely it couldn't have been that much trouble to take the staff with him. And Ash still wanted to know why everyone thought Sir Aaron had been a hero when he had run away and abandoned Lucario. 

Nobody spoke for several minutes, too bewildered by the sudden turn of events to know what to say. Finally, however, Lucario spoke up again, sounding more thoughtful than angry now.

" _There might be a way for us to find out what happened for certain,_ " he announced. " _If I travel to the Tree of Beginning, I might be able to find out if Sir Aaron truly betrayed the kingdom._ " 

"But how would that help?" Ash asked, more confused than ever now. 

" _Have you heard of a Pokemon called Mew?_ " Lucario asked. Ash nodded uncertainly, still not entirely sure where this was going. " _Mew resides in the Tree of Beginning. She will know the truth about what happened on the day of that battle._ " 

Ash tilted his head to the side. "I thought the battle took place hundreds of years ago, though. Are you sure Mew will still be alive?" 

" _Ah, that's one of the many perks of being a legendary-or, well, mythical if we want to get technical-Pokemon,_ " Lucario replied with a small chuckle. " _You see, legendary and mythical Pokemon have much longer life spans than humans or even normal Pokemon. It's not uncommon for them to live for up to two thousand years, and some may live even longer than that. Mew should still be in her prime._ " 

"Whoa," Ash breathed, feeling his head spin. "That's a really long time." 

" _Too long,_ " Froakie grunted. " _I wouldn't want to live for two thousand years. It would get awfully boring after a while._ " 

"In that case, I wish you the best of luck on your journey, Lucario," Lady Ilene said graciously, bowing to the ancient Pokemon. 

" _Thank you, Your Highness,_ " Lucario replied solemnly. 

Turning to Ash, he continued, " _Ash, if your mother will allow for it, I would like it if you accompanied me on my journey to the Tree of Beginning._ " 

"Really?" Ash asked, blinking. "You want me to come with you?" 

Lucario chuckled, smiling fondly at him. " _I like you, Ash, and besides that, I think you could make a fine Aura Guardian someday. If you're interested, I would be more than happy to train you. The journey to the Tree of Beginning would be a good place to start._ " 

"Yeah, sure! That sounds awesome!" he exclaimed. Then he frowned. "Wait, but if I decide to train to become an Aura Guardian, does that mean I'll have to stay here in the Kingdom of Rota until I'm done? Because I still really want to go on my Pokemon journey when I turn ten. I mean, I want to become an Aura Guardian too, but I've been waiting to go on my journey ever since I was little." 

" _Don't worry, Ash. You can still go on your journey and train to become an Aura Guardian at the same time,_ " Lucario reassured him. 

"Really? Then yes, I want to go with you!" Ash exclaimed happily. Turning to his mother, he begged, "Mom, can I go, Mom, please?" 

Delia hesitated for several moments. It was clear that although she didn't like the idea of sending her son off on a trip without her, she was wise enough to realize that he likely wouldn't take no for an answer. Besides, he would be leaving home for his own journey in just two years. Perhaps getting a bit of traveling experience under his belt would be a good idea. Ash, for his part, was already planning on the best way to sneak off with Lucario in case his mother refused him. 

" _Delia,_ " Lucario spoke up again. " _You don't have to worry about anything. I promise I'll look after your son._ " 

" _And I'll look after him too!_ " Froakie piped up. 

The auburn-haired woman shot Lucario a sharp look. "You'll watch after him? Make sure he doesn't get himself into any trouble?" 

" _You have my word,_ " Lucario promised. 

"Very well, then," Delia replied, nodding. Turning to Ash, she added sternly, "Now, Ash, if I let you go with Lucario, then I want you to promise me that you'll behave yourself. That means no running off whenever you feel like it. We don't know the wild Pokemon in this area, and they might not be as friendly as the ones in Viridian Forest. Can you promise me that?" 

"Yes, Mom. I promise," Ash said, nodding his head fervently. "I'll be really, really good. Swear on it." 

Delia smiled, ruffling his hair. "Alright, dear. You can go." 

"YIPEE!" Ash shouted gleefully, earning himself several amused laughs from the others. 

"Lucario, would you mind waiting until tomorrow to set out?" Delia asked, turning back to the jackal. "It's getting late tonight, and Ash needs to get to bed. And I still need to prepare some rations for him and Froakie to take on the trip." 

" _That's quite alright, I understand,_ " Lucario agreed graciously. " _I'll tell you what. Tomorrow morning, I'll wait here at the castle. Once Ash and Froakie are ready to go, send them on their way and have them meet me here._ " 

"Thank you for understanding, Lucario," Delia said gratefully. "I'll do my best not to keep you waiting for too long." 

"Yay!" Ash cheered, skipping about the grand hall with Froakie. "Road trip!" 


	8. Road Trip

After spending years training to become an Aura Guardian, Lucario was more than used to waking up extremely early in the morning to start his day. Even Sir Aaron hadn't woken up nearly as early as he did, meaning that Lucario had often spent at least two hours by himself before his master awoke to begin their training. Considering how young Ash was, Lucario was fully prepared to wait until at least mid-morning to begin their trek to the Tree of Beginning. 

Much to Lucario's surprise, however, the sun was barely beginning to peer over the horizon when Ash and the strange blue frog arrived at the palace. The small boy was dressed in a black t-shirt with a blue jacket on top, a pair of red sneakers, and a red and white baseball cap. A small backpack was slung over his shoulders. As soon as they spotted Lucario, Ash and his companion waved excitedly at the Aura Pokemon. Lucario smiled back, feeling a surge of fondness at the childlike delight on Ash's face. Most of his time living in Cameron Palace had been spent with Sir Aaron, but there were a few Rota children that he had enjoyed playing with whenever he found an hour or two to spare. 

"Hi, Lucario! Sorry if we kept you waiting," Ash apologized once they had drawn a bit closer. 

" _That's alright, Ash. You're actually here earlier than I expected,_ " Lucario admitted, grinning at the surprised look on the boy's face. 

Ash grinned back before his eyes widened, apparently having just remembered something. "Oh yeah! I almost forgot, I don't think I ever introduced you to Froakie last night, did I?" 

" _I don't believe we've met properly yet, no,_ " he replied, glancing over at the frog-like Pokemon on Ash's shoulder. " _So you're Froakie, then? It's a pleasure to meet you._ " 

" _Nice to meet you too,_ " Froakie replied, giving him a thumbs-up. " _And thanks, Ash, for finally remembering me._ " 

"No problem at all, Fennekin, I mean, Fraxure, I mean, Flareon, I mean, Furret, I mean–eh, sorry, who are you again?" Ash asked, pretending to look confused as he scratched his head. 

Smiling at their playful banter, Lucario broke in, " _If you're all ready to go, we should head out now. It's going to take at least a few days to reach the Tree of Beginning, so the sooner we head out, the better._ " 

"Great! Let's go, then!" the black-haired boy exclaimed cheerfully. 

He turned around and started racing toward the castle entrance. Then, evidently remembering his mother's warning from the night before about running off, he quickly tried to put on the brakes. Unfortunately, the sudden change in speed was too much for his body to handle, and he went tumbling onto the ground. Froakie managed to jump to the side to avoid hitting the pavement, but Ash was flattened underneath his backpack. 

"Oof," he grunted. 

" _Are you alright?_ " Lucario asked worriedly, bending over to observe the young child. " _That looked painful._ " 

Ash groaned for a moment, but in the next second, he was back on his feet again, smiling as if nothing had happened. "Yep! No need to worry about me! Now come on, let's go!" 

" _Well, alright, if you're sure. Just be careful,_ " the Aura Pokemon replied, more than a little amused. 

They set off again, this time at a more reasonable pace. Lucario made sure that Ash stayed within a few feet of him at all times, slowing down slightly to accomodate for the boy's shorter legs. Not only did he not want to incur Delia's wrath if he failed to adequately protect her son, he was also the only one with any knowledge of the Tree of Beginning's location. It could be seen from the castle, true, but actually getting there was another story altogether. 

As they traveled along a dirt path, Lucario noticed that Ash seemed to be limping slightly. He felt a twinge of worry. Had Ash injured himself when he fell down back at the palace after all? But the child wasn't showing any other signs of pain that he could see. Perhaps he was just being paranoid. 

"Hey, Lucario?" Ash spoke up suddenly. "So, how exactly do you train to become an Aura Guardian? And what do Aura Guardians do anyway?" 

" _Well, to answer your second question, Aura Guardians are, essentially, exactly what the name suggests they are: guardians who have been trained in the art of manipulating aura in order to protect humans and Pokemon alike,_ " Lucario answered. Seeing that his explanation had confused Ash, he clarified, " _It means they use aura to protect people and Pokemon_." 

"Oh...okay, yeah. I think I get it," the messy-haired child said, nodding. "So how do you become an Aura Guardian, then? What's the training like?" 

" _It's a bit complicated, so I'll give you a basic rundown of it for now. Once we actually start your training, I'll go into a little more detail,_ " the fighting-type replied thoughtfully. " _Let's see...the first step in your training will be learning to meditate. This will help you get in touch with yourself, which allows you to tap into your aura. After that, we will move on to using your aura to enhance your physical abilities, such as speed and combat skills. From there, you'll learn how to use your aura to sense if other living beings are in the area, as well as how to understand Pokemon speech._ " 

Ash winced slightly. "Meditating sounds kind of hard though, and all that other stuff sounds really hard too. Are you sure I can do all that?" 

" _Of course, Ash. It's going to take time, but I have full faith in you,_ " Lucario said gently. 

" _Yeah, Ash. Don't worry so much, you'll be a great Aura Guardian someday!_ " Froakie piped up, patting Ash's back cheerfully. 

The raven-haired boy smiled back, looking a bit more confident now. "Thanks, guys. I promise I'll work really, really hard." 

" _I'm sure you will,_ " Lucario replied kindly. His tone turned serious as he continued, " _There is one more aspect of aura training that I haven't mentioned yet. It is the ability to transfer aura to another living creature to heal them or, in extreme cases, save them from death. This is the last and most dangerous aspect of being an Aura Guardian, as it implies that you are willing to sacrifice your life for that of another. If you give away too much of your aura at once, you could die._ " 

" _Jeez, Lucario. Scare my best friend a bit more, why don't you?_ " Froakie complained, frowning. 

" _I'm sorry, Froakie. I have to tell Ash the truth about what could happen, though. It isn't fair if I ask him to train as an Aura Guardian without telling him all the risks involved,_ " the jackal apologized. 

"T-that's okay, I can handle it," Ash spoke up. Lucario could tell that he was still shocked, but he was trying not to let it show. "So, uh...how much is too much of my aura?" 

" _I'm afraid I don't know. The amount of aura that can safely be transferred is different for every Aura Guardian,_ " he explained. At Ash's worried look, he quickly reassured him, " _Don't worry, you'll feel it when you start to use up too much of your aura. Once it starts, well...you can choose whether to stop or to keep going. You'll only die if you use up too much for your body to be able to replenish it in time._ " 

Ash nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. Lucario was relieved to see that his warning hadn't deterred the child from wanting to train as an Aura Guardian. Not that he would have blamed him if it had; death wasn't an easy topic for anyone to deal with, least of all someone as young as Ash. 

Eventually, the group decided to take a quick lunch break in the middle of an open field. Lucario went off to gather a few berries from a nearby bush while Ash poured some odd-looking brown pellets into a bowl for Froakie. This, he supposed, must be what passed for Pokemon food in these times. He had to admit that it didn't seem all that bad either. True, its appearance left a lot to be desired, but it smelled alright from what he could tell. Once Ash had finished preparing Froakie's food, he unwrapped one of the sandwiches his mother had packed for him and took a bite. 

"Mm! This is really good!" Ash exclaimed. "Hey, Froakie, want to have a bit? Mom made peanut butter and jelly!" 

" _Sure!_ " Froakie agreed happily, taking the piece of sandwich that Ash was offering him. " _Yum! Thanks, Ash._ " 

"What about you, Lucario? You can have some too if you want," the small boy offered. 

Lucario was about to reply when he noticed a strange-looking stain on the left knee of Ash's jeans. At first, he thought that Ash must have gotten jelly on his pants somehow and was about to suggest that he clean himself up. Upon closer inspection, however, he realized with a surge of trepidation that the stain wasn't coming from the outside of his jeans, but rather from the inside. 

" _Ash, would you mind rolling up your pant leg for me?_ " he asked calmly. Ash started rolling up the right leg, and he added, " _The other leg, Ash._ " 

Ash did as he was told, rolling up his left pant leg, revealing a large red scrape. The blood had mostly dried up now, but Lucario guessed that it had stained his jeans while they were walking. At the sight of the injury, Froakie winced sympathetically, and Lucario himself had trouble pushing down his worry. 

_No wonder he was limping earlier if that's what his knee looks like._

" _Ash,_ " he murmured, kneeling down to observe the boy's scrape. " _I knew that fall looked pretty nasty._ " 

"I'm okay," Ash blurted out instantly. "It's not that bad. It doesn't even really hurt anymore." 

He shook his head. " _That might be, but we still need to clean this before it gets infected. Let's see...there isn't any water near here that I know of...and the lake will take at least another day to reach..._ " 

"It's okay, Mom gave me some healing cream and bandages before we left," Ash told him. "Hold on, just let me get them out of my bag." 

Lucario nodded and watched as Ash dug through his backpack, eventually reemerging with a small tube and a roll of white bandages. Carefully, he unscrewed the tube and squeezed a tiny droplet onto his index finger before rubbing it over his injured knee. Once he was finished, he wrapped the bandages around his knee a few times before breaking off the rest of the roll. 

" _He has experience doing this, doesn't he?_ " Lucario remarked. 

Froakie nodded. " _You wouldn't believe how many time's he's hurt himself because he runs off everywhere or because he tried to climb a tree and fell out. At this point, he's going to give both me and Delia a heart attack someday._ " 

"Hey! I'm not that bad!" Ash protested. 

" _Are you sure about that?_ " Froakie teased him. " _I've heard all about your misadventures, you know._ _What about the time you decided to jump off the swings at the park?_ " 

"But it was snowy and I didn't get hurt!" 

" _Alright, and what about when you jumped into the middle of a Gyarados-infested lake and had to be rescued by a fisherman?_ " 

"That's not true! I fell off the dock!" 

" _Fine, fine. But what about when you climbed to the top of your three-story school's roof and decided to see how long you could dangle off the edge?_ " 

Lucario, who had been laughing silently at the exchange up until this point, felt his jaw drop open. " _You did_ what _now?!_ " 

At that, Ash gave him a rather sheepish grin. "Uh...yeah...so that's a thing that happened..." 

Quickly steeling himself, Lucario replied sternly, " _And that's something that will never happen again. No more hanging off of tall buildings for you–or anywhere more than six feet off the ground, for that matter._ " 

"Okay. I didn't even like it on the roof anyway. It was cold and slippery," the boy stated, frowning in obvious distate at the memory. 

Suddenly, Lucario sensed a fourth presence near Ash's backpack. Turning around, he saw a female Rattata munching on the leftover slice of Ash's sandwich. As soon as their eyes met, the little purple rat froze, looking back at Lucario guiltily. 

" _Ash, I think someone's enjoying your food there,_ " Lucario said calmly. 

"Huh?" Looking confused, Ash turned and looked over his shoulder, quickly spotting the Rattata still eating his sandwich. "Whoa! Check it out, it's a Rattata!" 

Apparently realizing that she had been caught, Rattata quickly dropped the sandwich. " _I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal your food. I was just really hungry! I promise I won't do it again!_ " 

"Hey, it's okay! We can share," Ash said cheerfully. He reached into his bag, pulling out another sandwich wrapped in foil and quickly unwrapped it, handing half of it to Rattata. "Here you go! My mom made lots of food for me, so I have plenty to share if you want." 

Her eyes shining, Rattata accepted the sandwich from Ash, taking a small bite. " _Yum! This is so good!_ " 

"Isn't it awesome? Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are my favorite," Ash said, smiling brightly. "Raspberry is my favorite flavor of jelly, but I like strawberry and grape too. Just make sure you don't eat the foil. I tried that once and it tasted really bad." 

Somehow, Lucario wasn't surprised to hear that Ash had tried to eat tin foil once. 

"Mom makes me peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch all the time," the child was saying now. "She's a really great mom, even if she does kind of worry about me a little too much. Everyone I know says that's just what moms do, though." 

" _And for good reason too,_ " Froakie pointed out. " _Or do we need to go over this again?_ " 

"Yeah, yeah. I got it, thanks," Ash said, waving his hand dismissively. 

" _Good. Because I don't know about you, but I'd like to see you live to reach your next birthday,_ " the frog Pokemon said, half-joking, half-serious. 

"That's okay! If I die, I'll just tell Arceus to put me back." 

" _I don't think that's how it works, Ash. And do you really think the god of Pokemon will listen to you?_ " 

"Uh...maybe?" 

" _Good luck with that._ " 

Lucario smiled to himself, watching indulgently as Ash continued talking animatedly with Rattata and Froakie, even splitting the other half of his sandwich between the two Pokemon. Yes, Ash might have been nervous about his ability to learn how to use aura, but there was truly no need for him to be. He had all the right characteristics to become a fully-fledged Aura Guardian someday, and Lucario intended to do everything he could to bring all that Ash could be to the surface. 


	9. Training

Despite his initial concerns about his ability to learn how to use aura properly, Ash was more eager than ever to begin his training. As soon as lunch was over, he practically pounced on Lucario, begging him to start teaching him. In his excitement, he nearly tripped and fell again, only managing to avoid another spill when Lucario caught him just before he hit the ground. Even so, this didn't deter Ash in the slightest, and he immediately went back to bouncing around like a Spoink. 

"When can we start? When can we start? When can we start?" he asked excitedly. 

" _Calm down there, Ash,_ " Lucario said, looking rather amused. " _We're going to start by teaching you how to meditate first, but we won't get very far if you keep bouncing around like that. And isn't it bad for you to move around so much right after eating anyway? You might make yourself sick._ " 

"No, I won't! I don't get sick after I eat!" Ash insisted. 

" _That's true, he doesn't,_ " Froakie interjected, a fond but exasperated look on his face. " _He does this after every single meal, at least from what I've seen. I haven't seen him get sick yet._ " 

Ash grinned at Froakie's support, and Lucario shook his head. " _That might be so, but you should still burn off a little of that energy before we try meditating. Let's keep traveling for a bit, and then when we settle down for the evening, we can begin your training then._ " 

"Aw," he frowned, pouting slightly. "Alright, then." 

Froakie chuckled at him, and Lucario patted him on the head. " _Don't worry, Ash. Evening will be here before you know it. Now, come on, we should get going._ " 

Once Ash had finished packing up his bag–leaving one more sandwich out on a small napkin in case Rattata or another Pokemon came by and wanted a snack–he fell in line with Lucario as the group continued on their way to the Tree of Beginning. Although still slightly disappointed about having to wait to begin his training, he tried not to dwell too much on that fact. He walked beside the ancient Pokemon, laughing along with Froakie as they told Lucario stories of their time together since they had become friends. They might have only known each other for a month, but that had been more than enough time to have quite a few adventures. 

"Oh yeah, and there was this one time at school where our teachers made us all pick a Pokemon and write a report on it," Ash told the jackal. "That was after I met Froakie, but Mom said that I shouldn't do my project on him because the other kids might wonder how I know so much about a Pokemon that isn't from Kanto. So I decided to go with Squirtle instead, but Gary Oak said that only _he_ was allowed to do Squirtle and that if I didn't pick something else, he would tell the teacher that I was copying." 

" _That's not nice,_ " Lucario remarked with a frown. " _There was no rule that said you couldn't study the same Pokemon as another student, was there?_ " 

Ash shook his head, scowling at the memory. "No, but Gary always acts like he should get special treatment or something. He thinks he's the greatest person ever just because Professor Oak is his grandfather. I'm not allowed to have the same _anything_ as him because he says he doesn't want everyone to think he likes the same things as a loser like me. It's stupid and I think he's stupid too." 

" _Well, if that's the way he treats other children, then you're right, he is stupid,_ " Lucario agreed. 

" _Consider yourself lucky you haven't met him. I met him once–it would have been a little bit after Ash's project–and it took him exactly five seconds for me to want to hit him with a Water Pulse,_ " Froakie spoke up. " _He lives in Pallet Town like Ash and they're both the same age, but they couldn't be more different if they tried._ " 

"I punched him in the stomach once," Ash announced, earning him a shocked look from both Lucario and Froakie, neither of whom had heard this story yet. 

It wasn't a story he was particularly proud of, but his pride as well as lingering resentment over the incident kept him from feeling too guilty. A few months before he met Froakie, Ash had been playing by himself during recess, drawing pictures of the different Kanto starters with chalk. About ten minutes into this, Gary had approached him and started making fun of Ash, criticizing his drawings and telling him that they looked like a toddler had done them. Despite repeated pleas from the raven-haired boy to leave him alone, Gary refused to leave, continuing to taunt him until Ash finally snapped and punched him square in the gut. Unfortunately, at that very moment, the playground monitor had walked by and seen him punch Gary. Needless to say, she had been less than impressed, and Ash was forced to write a letter of apology to Gary while also losing his recess privileges for a week. Meanwhile, Gary had gotten off without any punishment at all despite being the one to start everything. The injustice of it all still burned him from the inside, and even now, Ash refused to speak to the playground monitor whenever he saw her. 

He relayed all of this to Froakie and Lucario, both of whom looked outraged on his behalf by the end of it. " _How is it fair that you're the only one punished when Gary was the one who started it?_ " Froakie asked angrily. " _That's not right!_ " 

"I don't know why the playground monitor was so mad anyway. It's not like I hurt him, at least not really. He didn't even have to go to the nurse," Ash complained. 

" _What did your mother have to say about all this?_ " Lucario inquired. 

"Well, she was mad at first, but she was okay after I told her what really happened. She just told me that it was best to use my words instead of hitting," the raven-haired boy answered. 

" _But you did use your words,_ " Froakie pointed out, looking puzzled. " _You told Gary to leave you alone, and when he kept refusing, you punched him._ " 

"Yeah, that's what I said too," Ash agreed, nodding. "Mom said that she meant I should have told a teacher what was happening instead of hitting Gary. But I don't like telling teachers stuff because if you do, everyone starts saying you're a tattletale. And if you're a tattletale, then nobody wants to play with you." 

" _Reporting someone for being a bully isn't tattling,_ " the jackal Pokemon stated, frowning. 

"Yeah, maybe," he replied with a shrug. He grinned as he added, "I got back at him later, though." 

" _Really?_ " Froakie asked eagerly. " _How?_ " 

"I stuck a toy Ekans in his desk, and it scared him so much that he screamed," Ash answered, feeling a surge of pride. "And nobody saw me put it in there, so I didn't get in trouble." 

Froakie gave him an approving grin, and Lucario smiled in amusement. " _Very cunning, Ash, I must admit. Well done._ " 

They continued on their way, talking more about their personal lives. Eventually, the topic of conversation switched over to Froakie. Lucario, for one, was extremely curious to know how Ash had managed to obtain a Pokemon despite claiming to be too young to be a trainer. 

"Well, Froakie isn't really my Pokemon yet, so I'm not really his trainer," the messy-haired child explained. "But as soon as I turn ten, Professor Oak is going to give me a Pokeball, and I'll be able to catch him for real." 

" _I see, but what made him decide to let you keep Froakie until then?_ " Lucario asked, sounding confused. 

Ash frowned, trying to think of the best way to explain the situation to his new friend. "Well, I don't really get how it works yet, but Professor Sycamore–he's from the Kalos region like Froakie–said that Froakie has a special power. Something called the...the...bond phenomenon? Yeah, that. Have you ever heard of it?" 

Lucario shook his head. " _No, but it does sound fascinating. So what does this power do?_ " 

" _Well, no one really knows for sure. It's only ever been recorded once in history, and that was hundreds of thousands of years ago,_ " Froakie answered. " _It's already an extremely rare ability, and on top of that, it can only be drawn out with the right trainer. From birth, other Froakie with this power are destined to be with a specific trainer, but with all the possible trainers in the world, it's unlikely that they'd ever find the right one. The fact that I found Ash was really just a stroke of pure luck._ " 

"Professor Sycamore said that Froakie and my souls are-are-the same half of two wholes?" Ash added, then frowned. That didn't sound quite right. 

" _You mean two halves of the same whole?_ " Lucario asked, laughter shining in his crimson-colored eyes. 

"Two halves of the same whole, yeah," he answered, nodding. "He says that's why I can understand Froakie when he talks too. With other Pokemon, I kind of just have to guess what they mean." 

He paused as a sudden realization hit him. "Hey, Lucario, how do you know how to use Telepathy? I thought only psychic-type and legendary Pokemon could use Telepathy, but you're not a legendary and you don't look like a psychic-type either." 

" _Correct, I'm not a psychic-type. I'm a fighting and steel-type,_ " Lucario told him. " _As for being able to use Telepathy, that's a common misconception. It's true that only psychic and legendary Pokemon are born with the ability to use it, but any Pokemon can learn how with enough training._ " 

"But if anyone can learn, then why doesn't every Pokemon learn Telepathy?" Ash asked, confused. 

" _A few reasons, really. Number one, learning a skill such as that takes years of practice and dedication, something that a lot of Pokemon just don't want to take the time for,_ " the jackal explained. " _Number two, some Pokemon believe it to be a sin against nature to speak in the same language as humans._ " 

Ash had no idea what a "sin against nature" was, but he assumed it wasn't a good thing. He walked on in silence for a few minutes, trying to imagine a world in which every single Pokemon spoke using Telepathy. Would things be better or worse than they were now? 

"You know what? I think it's okay if not every Pokemon decides to learn Telepathy," he announced abruptly. "I think all Pokemon are great the way they are."

* * *

Later that night, Lucario sat down underneath a large oak tree, gazing up at the starlit sky. He and Ash had just finished the boy's first training session on his way to becoming an Aura Guardian about fifteen minutes ago, and the boy–along with Froakie–had quickly fallen asleep. Lucario, however, chose to stay up for a bit longer to clear his head, taking advantage of the silence to reflect on Ash's first day of training. 

Just as he had promised, they had started by teaching him how to meditate. Given how overexcited Ash could be at the best of times, Lucario had fully expected it to take at least a few sessions before he got the hang of things. Much to his surprise, however, Ash managed to get the basics of meditation down almost immediately. He still struggled with his posture at times, but that would be an easy enough fix. 

Almost instinctively, he found his gaze wandering over to where the small boy was wrapped up in a sleeping bag, a peaceful expression on his childlike face. As he watched him, Lucario was struck by how much younger Ash appeared when he was asleep. Indeed, if he hadn't known any better, he might have thought the boy was five or six years old instead of eight. 

" _Ash,_ " he murmured fondly, feeling something tug at his heart. 

Not for the first time, Lucario found himself grateful that Ash-and Froakie too, of course-had accompanied him on his journey to the Tree of Beginning. Without their presence to keep him distracted, he probably would have ended up brooding over Sir Aaron's betrayal the entire time. Indeed, he considered himself very fortunate to have met Ash at all, and he didn't think it was entirely a coincidence that the child should appear in his life right as he was in desperate need of something, _anything_ , to show him that there was still some good left in the world. 

The pain from his former master's abandonment was still lingering, like an old cut that refused to heal properly. But there was something about Ash that made it easier to bear. And, in a way, the boy reminded Lucario of himself when he was still a small Riolu. 

The childlike innocence. The way he was always bouncing up and down, raring to go at every moment. The smile that glowed as brightly by the sun, not yet dimmed by the horrors of the world. The way he laughed and shouted at the top of his lungs. The delight at the prospect of going on an adventure. 

And as Ash rolled over in his sleeping bag, still oblivious to the fact that he was being watched, Lucario chuckled quietly to himself and thought, _Arceus, let him never grow up._


	10. Into The Tree

It took another two days of traveling to reach the Tree of Beginning. During that time, Ash continued training his aura with Lucario's guidance. Seeing as he had only just started his training, they had yet to move past meditation, but he didn't mind too much. It at least gave Ash a good excuse to run around and play since Lucario had quickly realized that it would be impossible to get him to focus on meditating if he wasn't allowed to burn off a little energy. Much to Ash's delight, he was allowed to play to his heart's content as long as he didn't wander out of Lucario's sight, although the jackal put his foot down when he started doing backflips off of a low-hanging tree branch. 

" _Alright, Ash. From now on, no more backflipping out of trees,_ " Lucario said sternly. " _I don't want to have to tell your mother that you broke your neck._

Ash nodded, biting back a grin. "Okay, Lucario. I promise. From now on, I won't backflip out of any more trees." 

Lucario gave him an exasperated look. " _And no front flipping, no cartwheels, no aerials, no jumping out of trees in any way, shape, or form whatsoever. In fact, let's agree that you'll keep your feet on the ground at all times except when absolutely necessary._ " 

"Aw," Ash pouted, frowning. "Okay." 

He really wanted to know what it was with everyone being so overprotective of him all the time. It wasn't as if he had ever hurt himself before, at least not really. Alright, so he had fallen and injured his knee earlier, but he barely counted that. Other kids at school fell and scraped their knees all the time; it was no big deal. Besides, he would be going on his Pokemon journey in just two years. Why was everyone still acting as though he were a little kid?

"How come Mom still treats me like a baby?" he complained, deciding to voice his grievances aloud. "I'm _not_ a baby. I thought people would stop treating me like I'm little all the time now that I'm almost old enough to go on my journey." 

" _That's mothers for you, Ash. They're always going to treat you like a little kid no matter how old you are,_ " Froakie informed him, patting him on the back sympathetically. 

" _Your mother loves you very much, Ash. That's why she worries so much about you,_ " Lucario said gently. " _It's not that she doesn't think you can take care of yourself. She's just afraid that you're going to get hurt. It's her job to worry about you. And besides, you have to admit you're not always the best when it comes to being careful._ " 

"Yeah, I guess," Ash sighed, kicking at a stray rock. "It just seems like the only thing I ever hear from anyone is "no" or "be careful" or something like that. No, you can't stay up past your bedtime, you have school in the morning. Be careful and don't go near the Beedrill nests. No, you can't have ice cream before dinner. No, you can't hang upside-down off the monkey bars. No, you can't climb to the top of that tree. Be careful when you cross the street. No, you can't watch that movie. No, you can't draw on the walls. No, you can't ride a bike with no hands. I can't wait until I turn ten. Then maybe everyone will stop telling me I can't do things all the time." 

" _Well, eight or ten, there are still going to be a few things that you aren't allowed to do,_ " Lucario reminded him. He placed a paw on Ash's free shoulder and added softly, " _Growing up really isn't as great as you think it is, Ash. I know it seems like your life is full of people telling you that you can't do anything, but trust me, there are still plenty of things you can do now that you won't be able to when you're older._ " 

"Really?" he asked skeptically. 

" _Really,_ " the ancient Pokemon confirmed. " _Don't be in such a hurry to grow up, Ash. Time will pass by faster than you realize, and before you know it, you won't be a little kid anymore. Take the time to enjoy your life the way it is now instead of always looking ahead to the future._ "

* * *

Much had changed in the centuries that had passed since Sir Aaron had sealed Lucario away in his staff. Back in those days, humans and Pokemon were only just learning how to coexist with one another. The concept of a Pokemon trainer would have been laughed at as a child's fantasy. The only Pokemon battles that took place were the wars that seemed as if they would tear the world apart sometimes. Pokeballs were nonexistent, and the closest and only equivalent they had would have been Sir Aaron's staff (whether the other Aura Guardians of the time were also in possession of similar artifacts, Lucario had no idea, having never seen fit to ask). 

However, one thing that had not changed in the slightest was the Tree of Beginning. It was still just as majestic as ever, its branches unbent and unbroken even after hundreds of years. Indeed, had Lucario not known any better, he might have thought he had suddenly been transported back to his own time. Before his master had betrayed him, when he was still a small Riolu seeing the Tree for the first time. Even now, the sight of it was still as breathtaking as ever. 

"Whoa," Ash breathed, staring up at the Tree of Beginning with wide eyes. 

" _Amazing,_ " Froakie whispered, sounding equally awed. 

Lucario grinned at their incredulity and delight. " _If you think the view out here is nice, just wait until you see the inside. Follow me-and Ash, remember, no running off._ " 

But as he turned to enter the tunnel that would lead them inside the Tree of Beginning, he found that his feet refused to move. No matter how hard he tried, he remained frozen in place, unable to take a single step forward. It felt as if the roots had sprung up from the ground to hold his feet in place. A weight settled itself on his chest, nearly suffocating him, and his heart suddenly dropping into his stomach didn't do anything to help. 

"Lucario?" Ash's voice sounded next to him, clearly worried. "What's wrong? How come you're not going in? Are you afraid?" 

" _No,_ " Lucario murmured, only half-truthful. 

No, he wasn't afraid, at least not in the sense that Ash was probably thinking. He wasn't afraid of going inside the tunnel, per se; he had taken the trip before and knew that the inside was probably one of the safest places, if not _the_ safest place in the world.

Rather, it was the truth he was afraid of. It wouldn't be much longer now, and he would finally find out for certain whether Sir Aaron had betrayed him and deserted the kingdom as he had been led to believe. Lucario's biggest fear was that he would find out that his suspicions had been right all along, that his master had indeed been a traitor and that the years he had spent training Lucario in the art of aura mastery had meant nothing to him. 

Suddenly, he felt a small, warm hand grasp his paw. Looking down, he saw Ash holding onto his paw, a bright smile on his face. 

"Hey, it's okay!" Ash said cheerfully. "We'll all be together, right? There's nothing to worry about!" 

For a moment, Lucario could only stand there, unable to find the capacity to move, let alone speak. As he looked down at Ash, however, he found himself cracking a small smile as well. There was just something about the child that made Lucario believe that he was telling the truth, that everything would turn out to be alright in the end. 

" _Yes, we will. You're right,_ " Lucario confirmed, giving the boy's hand a gentle squeeze. " _Now, come on. Mew's waiting for us inside the Tree_." 

Soon, he would finally discover the truth, whatever it might have been. The fear that he would turn out to be right in his beliefs hadn't quite disappeared yet, and he still felt as though a weight was pressing down on his chest. 

But he wasn't alone. He had Ash and Froakie with him. As long as he had their support, he would be ready to face whatever might be waiting for him when he walked through that tunnel.


	11. The Guardian's Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any dialogue that you might recognize comes from "Lucario and the Mystery of Mew", which I, unfortunately, do not own. I do, however, own a Lucario in Pokemon Go, but he was not trapped inside a staff for seven hundred years, nor does he know how to use Telepathy.

If the view of the Tree of Beginning from the outside had been impressive, it was nothing compared to the sight that greeted Ash when he actually set foot inside. Just beyond the tunnel lay a lush green forest stretching as far as the eye could see, filled with crystal-clear lakes. Crystal-like objects were scattered about the pristine woodland, and several Pokemon that Ash had never seen before were playing happily. Although the sun couldn't reach them, somehow, it was still as warm as a clear summer afternoon. 

" _Oh, wow,_ " Froakie breathed. 

Ash, meanwhile, couldn't even bring himself to speak. Every time he opened his mouth to try, it felt as though the breath was being stolen away from his lungs. Not that it really mattered either way. There weren't any words he could think of that could do justice in describing a place such as this. 

" _Isn't it beautiful?_ " Lucario murmured from beside him. " _I'll never forget the first time I set foot in here._ " 

"You've been in here before?" Ash asked, his eyes widening. 

The jackal nodded, a small smile on his face. " _Many times, in fact. I used to come here once a month with–with Sir Aaron as part of my training or whenever we just wanted a small break. It's a good place to relax, as you might have already noticed._ " 

Now that he thought about it, Ash could see why this forest would be a good relaxation spot. He hadn't really noticed it before, being too preoccupied with the breathtaking beauty of the Tree, but there was something about the air that sent ripples of blissful serenity rippling through his mind and body. Ash closed his eyes for a brief moment, allowing the feeling of calmness to wash over him. For the first time that he could remember, the desire to run about in every direction possible was pushed to the back of his mind. 

"It's..." he trailed off, still searching for a word that would adequately describe the Tree's beauty. 

Fortunately, Lucario seemed to understand. " _It truly is, isn't it?_ " 

" _Kalos has some nice places, but nothing compares to this,_ " Froakie agreed, still staring around in amazement. 

"How come people don't come here more often?" Ash asked curiously. 

" _In short, it's because this place is meant to be a safe haven for Pokemon to grow and thrive without human interference,_ " Lucario answered. " _So naturally, this place is very well-guarded. Add the fact that traveling to the Tree without a proper guide is extremely difficult if not impossible, and you'll find that you essentially have the perfect hideout. I'm sure plenty of people have tried coming here but have simply been unsuccessful._ " 

" _Well-guarded?_ " Froakie repeated, sounding as confused as Ash felt. " _But we were able to walk right in here with no problem. That doesn't seem very well-guarded to me._ " 

" _The Tree of Beginning is actually protected by the three legendary Pokemon, Regirock, Regice, and Registeel,_ " Lucario told them. " _Their job is to ward off any intruders. They're powerful, but we're a small group, so they shouldn't perceive us as much of a threat. As long as we don't disturb anyone, we should be able to make it to the heart of the Tree of Beginning safely._ "

"Whoa. _Three_ legendary Pokemon?" Ash asked excitedly. "And have you really met all of them?" 

" _Yes, I have. And no, I will not be taking you to meet them,_ " Lucario said sternly. 

Ash frowned, pouting. "Aw. Why not? I promise I won't do anything to hurt anyone."

" _I know that and you know that, but they don't, and their mantra is attack first, ask questions later–or, more likely, never at all,_ " the ancient Pokemon explained gently. " _It's best if we stay out of their way as much as possible for your own safety–yours and Froakie's._ " 

"Oh...okay," he agreed finally. "What about Mew? Can I meet her? She lives here too, right?" 

Lucario smiled down at him. " _Yes, of course you can meet her. I think she'll like you very much, Ash._ " 

"Yipee!" Ash cheered, suddenly feeling much happier. 

They continued on their way toward the heart of the Tree, soon coming upon another tunnel leading out of the pristine forest. Ash was sorry to leave it behind, but he knew they had to keep going. After all, they were on an important mission, not to watch other Pokemon play. The desire to help Lucario find out the truth about Sir Aaron kept his feet moving forward, and soon the sound of the delighted chirps of the forest Pokemon had faded away into the background. 

He couldn't explain why, but he felt as though he _needed_ to help Lucario. Much like Froakie, the jackal felt like a lifelong friend even though they had only known each other for a few days. Already, Ash often found himself venting about frustrations to Lucario that he had previously only shared with Froakie. The ancient Pokemon had been nothing but kind and gentle with him, patiently teaching him the ways of an Aura Guardian despite how slow his progress probably was. If there was anything at all that he could do to repay him, even in the slightest, then he was ready to do it. 

* * *

As it turned out, luck was on their side, and they were able to make it to the heart of the Tree without running into any of the Regis. Indeed, aside from Ash nearly tripping over a crystal and having to be caught by Lucario, the trip was largely uneventful. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed by this. Being eight years old, Ash lived for adventure and excitement, but if the Regis were really as dangerous as Lucario had implied, he figured it would be best to steer clear of them.

They stepped inside what appeared to be a large room with a massive crystal formation in the center, as well as several smaller ones scattered about the room. This, Ash supposed, was the heart of the Tree of Beginning. It didn't look all that impressive–especially not compared to the forest at the entrance to the Tree–but what it lacked visually, it more than made up for in the power he could feel radiating around him. 

"Is this the place?" he asked, glancing over at Lucario, who nodded. "But where's Mew, then?" 

Lucario seemed to be about to answer but froze suddenly, his mouth hanging half-open as he stared at a spot about twenty feet away from them, on the edge of the large crystal formation in the center of the room. Confused, Ash followed the ancient Pokemon's gaze and saw something he definitely hadn't been expecting to see in a place like this: a pair of black gloves.

"Huh?" he asked aloud, more bemused than ever. 

" _What's going on?_ " Froakie echoed. " _What are those doing here?_ " 

Ash followed Lucario as the jackal raced toward the spot where the gloves lay. As he drew closer, he realized that his original perception of the heart had been wrong–it wasn't one giant crystal formation, but rather two, one larger one and one smaller one directly in front of it. He studied the smaller formation for a moment, then froze. Unless he was very much mistaken, there appeared to be the outline of a human figure etched into the crystals. 

" _Could it be?_ " Lucario murmured. He was looking, not at the crystals, but at the gloves. " _These are his gloves, but how...?_ " 

"Lucario, look!" Ash said urgently, pointing toward the crystal formation. "There's something–no, someone–in there!" 

At the sound of his voice, Lucario looked up. His eyes widened. " _Sir Aaron?_ " 

He raised his paw, a blue sphere forming from the center of his palm-or where his palm would be at least. At the same time, a distinctly human shape began to glow from within the crystals. Ash stared in disbelief, his jaw hanging open. Although he wasn't particularly familiar with the famous legend, he easily recognized the man he had seen in the portrait in the grand hall back at Cameron Palace. 

" _It is you,_ " Lucario whispered, seemingly unable to believe his eyes. Not that Ash could blame him; he scarcely believed what he was seeing either. 

Ash stared in bewilderment. So Sir Aaron must have come here after trapping Lucario inside his staff, but why? Why this place and not somewhere else? And how had he ended up in this position in the first place? Had he truly been trying to save the kingdom as the legend stated, or had he been sealed inside the crystals as punishment for abandoning the queen? 

"How-how did he get like that?" Ash asked finally, his voice faltering. 

" _I-I don't know,_ " Lucario answered, shaking his head. " _There's only one way, but...I don't understand, if he was going to...then why did he tell me...?_ " 

" _Here,_ " a soft voice whispered from somewhere to their left. " _Touch this, and everything will be explained._ " 

Startled, Ash jerked his head up to see a small pink cat floating nearby, watching Lucario with a sad yet understanding look in her eyes. Mew hovered near an odd-looking blue and pink flower, gesturing toward it with her paw. He had seen a couple of them on the trip from Cameron Palace, but Lucario hadn't made any mention of them and Ash had been too excited about getting to properly train his aura to bother asking. 

"What is that?" he blurted out. 

" _It's called a time flower. Aura Guardians use them to see events that have happened in the past,_ " Lucario explained, still not taking his eyes off the flower. 

"But how do you know it's going to show you what really happened during the battle?" Ash asked, frowning. "If the flower records the past, does that mean it could show something that happened five minutes ago? That's still in the past, right?" 

" _It doesn't quite work that way,_ " Mew explained gently. " _You see, you need to activate a time flower before it will record anything. Only those with an extremely powerful aura-or, more accurately, an Aura Guardian-would be able to do this. To everyone else, it would just be another flower._ "

Ash nodded in understanding, then turned to Lucario as the jackal pressed a paw to the flower. All at once, a vision unfolded before everyone's eyes, reminding Ash a bit of the time his kindergarten teacher had managed to project a movie for them to watch on the middle of the soccer field. And although he had never been the best at paying attention to anything, he found that this time, he couldn't tear his eyes away. 

He watched as Sir Aaron came bursting into the cavern, listened as he called out frantically for Mew. He heard Sir Aaron ask Mew to allow him to give her his aura so that she would be able to save the Tree of Beginning. He heard Mew murmur softly in agreement as the Aura Guardian stretched out his hand toward her. 

He watched as a bright blue sphere began to emerge from Sir Aaron's hand, steadily growing larger and larger as it enveloped around the small pink cat. He watched as his body began to shake, listened as he began to shout in obvious agony. 

Yet still, he never stopped. He never wavered once, never moved his hand away despite the pain he was clearly in. 

Was it just Ash's imagination, or did Sir Aaron's body look almost transparent now? 

And just like that, the scene was over. The last sight Ash had before the vision faded away was of the energy Sir Aaron had been transferring to Mew exploding outward in a burst of light. 

Even as the vision disappeared and the cavern returned to normal, Ash still couldn't tear his eyes away from the time flower. Sir Aaron had been a hero after all. He had sacrificed himself to save the Kingdom of Rota. 

A soft sobbing noise brought him back to reality. Turning his head to the side, he felt his heart break as he saw Lucario kneeling in front of the time flower, shaking with tears. 

" _Forgive me for doubting you, Master,_ " Lucario choked out. 

"Lucario..." Ash whispered, then stopped. What was he supposed to say in a situation like this? Instead, he just stood there silently, watching as Lucario grieved for his long-lost friend. 

He was still confused, though. The vision had proven at least that Sir Aaron hadn't been a traitor, but it hadn't done anything to explain why he had sealed Lucario away in the staff. But with the state Lucario was in now, Ash didn't want to give voice to his thoughts. 

And anyway...maybe, just maybe, the vision _had_ explained why. 

Sir Aaron had been a fully-fledged Aura Guardian. Which meant he must have known what would happen if he transferred too much of his aura to Mew. Which meant that he had come to the Tree of Beginning intending to sacrifice himself to protect the kingdom. Perhaps, in that case, he had sealed Lucario away to prevent him from having to witness his death-or to prevent him from sharing the same fate. 

Then again, it didn't matter if Ash understood the reasoning Sir Aaron's actions. All that mattered was whether Lucario did–and from what Ash was seeing, that certainly appeared to be the case. 

Ash looked around the cavern, then down at the time flower again, careful not to stare directly at Lucario, who was still crying openly. The vision was still burned into his mind as clearly as if it were still playing in front of him. He couldn't imagine how much pain Sir Aaron must have been in during those final few moments. It wasn't often that Ash heard grown men yelling in agony as he had while he was transferring his aura to Mew. 

But in the end, it had worked. The kingdom had been saved, and even now, centuries later, it still remained standing. Sir Aaron hadn't only saved the lives of the people living in the Kingdom of Rota at the time, but the lives of everyone who would call it home in the years to come. 

He had died for Queen Rin, the wise ruler who refused to flee her kingdom even when it appeared as though all hope was lost. 

He had died for the two armies, stopping them from going to war, which would most definitely have resulted in even more deaths. 

He had died for Lucario, the student and friend he could never allow to suffer the same painful fate as he had. 

He had died for others. And he had done so without hesitation, without showing the slightest hint of fear. 

Dimly, he realized that Lucario had stopped crying now. He looked up at the jackal Pokemon hesitantly, still not entirely sure what to say that would be of any help. Lucario's eyes were red-rimmed and swollen, and they still held a great deal of sadness. Despite this, however, he smiled down at Ash. 

"Lucario..." Ash began again, then broke off as he found himself being pulled into a tight hug. 

" _Thank you,_ " he heard Lucario whisper, his voice still choked with emotion. 

After a few moments, Lucario finally let go of him, stepping back slightly. His eyes were still slightly swollen, but he appeared to be in better control of his emotions than he had a few minutes ago. Ash let his gaze wander toward the time flower for a minute, then looked back at his mentor again. 

"You know what? I think I'd be okay with transferring all of my aura to save someone else," Ash announced, smiling brightly at Lucario. "Because no matter what...if someone needs help, and there's something I can do for them, then I want to do it, you know? I don't know if that makes sense. But if giving up my aura means saving even one person, even if it's only for a short period of time, then I think it will be worth it." 

" _Oh, I think it makes perfect sense,_ " Lucario murmured, gently pulling the boy into another hug. " _You're very brave, Ash. Don't ever change._ " 

"I won't," Ash murmured back. "I promise." 


	12. Lucario's Request

When Lucario had first appeared in their lives, Froakie hadn't been entirely sure what to make of him. After all, it wasn't every day that a Pokemon suddenly burst out of a centuries-old staff in the middle of a party. Part of Froakie had initially been inclined to think that Lucario had done so simply for dramatic purposes. He still wondered why he hadn't bothered to free himself before-true, he had said that only a person with an aura similar to Sir Aaron's would be able to free him from the staff, but what was the likelihood that in seven hundred years (give or take a few), only _one_ person would happen to have the aura needed in order for him to escape? 

Granted, Froakie was well aware that his bond phenomemon power was even more rare, at least judging by a purely time-based standpoint. But, in his defense, the bond phenomenon was a power only Pokemon of his species were born with, and even then it was only a select few. Every living being in the world had an aura–every human, every Pokemon, every plant. It was the life force of all living creatures, after all. Maybe not everyone could learn to manipulate it, true, but everyone had it. The chances of Ash being the only Pokemon over several centuries to have an aura similar enough to Sir Aaron's to free Lucario seemed highly improbable. 

Of course, Ash had quickly taken to Lucario, much to Froakie's amused exasperation. At the same time, however, this only heightened his initial distrust of the ancient Pokemon. Ash was still young and didn't fully understand that not every Pokemon he came across was safe to run up to. If Lucario would have done anything to hurt his best friend, no matter in what way, he would have had to answer to Froakie. The fact that the Aura Pokemon had several years of battling experience on him didn't matter. 

But, as it turned out, there was no need for him to be suspicious of Lucario at all. Ever since they had set out on their quest to visit the Tree of Beginning, the Aura Pokemon had been nothing but gentle and caring toward Ash. He took care of the boy after he had injured his knee, and he made sure that Ash kept his promise to Delia about not running off. During mealtimes, Lucario even saw to it that Ash was getting enough to eat-no easy feat considering his tendency to share food with any Pokemon that crossed his path. Lucario seemed to have quite the protective streak in him as well, setting a fair amount of ground rules about Ash's safety. 

Froakie prided himself on being a good judge of character, and he felt that he would be able to sense it when someone's kindness was only for show. That didn't appear to be the case with Lucario. Everything about the ancient Pokemon's behavior suggested that the affection he showed toward Ash was genuine. He had seen the expression of mingled tenderness, amusement, and slight exasperation in Lucario's eyes whenever he looked at Ash, an expression that mirrored what Froakie often felt about the raven-haired boy himself. 

Now, he watched as Lucario stared up at the moon, just barely visible through the clouds covering the sky. It was well into the night, and Ash had long since fallen asleep. Despite this, both Pokemon remained awake, each enjoying the quiet night air. Slowly, Froakie found himself wandering over to where Lucario was sitting. The Aura Pokemon moved over slightly to make room for him but didn't say a word, instead continuing to gaze silently up at the moon. 

" _I used to come out here at night with Sir Aaron all the time. Part of my training was best done in the dark, and it helps that the forest is usually quiet around this time,_ " Lucario spoke up suddenly. " _After we were done, on some nights, we would sit down together and watch the moon just like this._ " 

" _Oh?_ " Froakie asked, not entirely sure what else to say to that. " _That...that does sound nice._ " 

" _It was,_ " Lucario agreed, a small smile cracking his features. " _So much has changed these past few centuries...but the moon still looks the same as ever. In fact, the last time I was out here with Sir Aaron, the clouds were partially hiding the moon just like they are tonight._ " 

" _Yeah...I have to say, that's the nice thing about moving to Pallet Town,_ " Froakie agreed. " _I used to live in Lumiose City, and the lights there are so bright, you can't really enjoy watching the moon. But in Pallet Town, you can since you're not being blinded in every direction you turn._ " 

The ancient Pokemon nodded, a sad look entering his eyes. " _I can still remember being out here like it was yesterday. It still does feel like it was only yesterday. When I first woke up after being inside that staff, I thought I was still back in my own time at first._ " 

Froakie had already figured as much, but he winced sympathetically. Waking up in an unfamiliar location was already unnerving enough as it was; he couldn't imagine what it must feel like to wake up and realize that several hundred years had gone by. In a way, Lucario had lost everything in one day. 

" _I still..._ " Lucario trailed off for a moment, shaking his head. " _I've never thought much about whether there's an afterlife or not. I always just thought I would wait and see. But now...I've spent these past few days hating my master because I thought he had abandoned me and the kingdom. I believed him to be a coward and a traitor. If there is an afterlife, then what must he think of me now?_ " 

This was a conversation Froakie had desperately been hoping to avoid. If there was one thing the Bubble Frog Pokemon definitely did _not_ pride himself on, it was his ability to provide comfort for others. That had always been Ash's strong suit, and he did it remarkably well for an eight-year-old child. But he sensed that Lucario needed someone to talk to, so he would do his best to be there for him. 

" _I'm sure Sir Aaron wouldn't blame you,_ " he replied, struggling to find the right words to say. " _You had good reason to believe what you did, and I'm sure he knew that when he sealed you away. I think that if he could see you-if he can see you-then he would just be glad that you're alright._ " 

" _Perhaps,_ " the Aura Pokemon agreed, his eyes still downcast. " _I just wish...I just wish there was some way I could speak to him again. I wish I could have told him, just once, how much he means to me._ " 

" _He knew,_ " Froakie assured him, and this time, he was one hundred percent certain of what he was saying. " _Just like you know how much he cared for you, I have no doubt that he knew how much you cared for him. Even if you never got around to saying so out loud. There are some things that we don't need words to express._ " 

Lucario chuckled quietly. " _You know, you remind me a lot of Ash. I think he would have said the exact same thing if he wasn't snoring away back there._ " 

Froakie grinned. " _Well, the kid may be reckless at times, but you won't find many people as kind as he is._ " 

" _Oh, I can believe that,_ " Lucario agreed. He shook his head and continued, " _So...you said you're from Kalos, if I recall correctly?_ " 

" _That's right. My species is meant to be the water-type starter for new trainers in Kalos,_ " Froakie confirmed. 

" _I understood maybe five of those words, but that does sound interesting,_ " the jackal replied, blinking. 

" _Right. I forgot they didn't have trainers back in your time,_ " he remarked, mentally slapping himself upside the head. " _Alright, then. To give a basic rundown, new Pokemon trainers are given a Pokemon partner to start their journey. Most of the time, they can choose between a water-type, a grass-type, or a fire-type. In Kanto, new trainers can choose from Squirtle, Bulbasaur, or Charmander._ " 

" _Ah. Yes, I think that makes sense,_ " Lucario mused, nodding. " _Was it nice in Kalos? I haven't seen much of the world outside of Rota._ " 

" _It wasn't bad, but Lumiose City was a bit too loud and crowded for my taste,_ " Froakie answered honestly. " _I prefer quieter places, which is why Pallet Town has been such a good fit. But no matter what, Kalos will always be my first home._ " 

They fell silent for a few minutes, enjoying the peaceful night together. Froakie turned to watch Ash as the small boy continued to sleep away, blissfully unaware of the conversation that was taking place between the two Pokemon. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Lucario was watching Ash as well. 

" _So...I take it that you'll be Ash's starter Pokemon, correct? Since...well, you mentioned something about a bond phenomenon?_ " Lucario inquired suddenly. 

Froakie blinked. " _Er...well, yes. But Professor Oak said Ash can still pick a starter Pokemon since he should really be starting with a Kanto Pokemon. Why do you ask?_ " 

" _Ah. Well...of course, I would understand if you would rather it just be the two-or, well, three-of you,_ " Lucario replied, averting his eyes toward the ground. " _But a lot has changed these past several hundred years, and I'd like to have the chance to explore a bit more of the world myself. And Ash seems serious about wanting to train his aura. If-if it wouldn't be much of a problem, perhaps you wouldn't mind a fourth member joining the party?_ " 

" _What-you mean you want to come with us?_ " Froakie asked, startled. 

" _If that's alright. I mean, I don't want to intrude. I'll understand if you'd rather not have me there,_ " the jackal said quickly. 

" _Are you kidding me? It would be great to have you there!_ " he exclaimed. 

" _Do you mean that?_ " Lucario asked, glancing over at him quickly. 

" _Of course! It's been awesome getting to know you these past few days, and as you said earlier, Ash does seem serious about training his aura. He won't get very far without your help. And anyway...he really likes you too. I think if you didn't volunteer to come, he would have dragged you back to Pallet Town with us himself,_ " Froakie answered seriously. 

Lucario's face immediately split into a delighted smile. The effect Froakie's acceptance-and, by extent, Ash's as well-of his request to join them on their travels was astounding. For the first time since he had emerged from the staff, the pain that had been lingering just behind his eyes finally disappeared. 


	13. Two Years

Over the next two years, Ash continued his Aura Guardian training under Lucario's mentorship. The training was as difficult as he had expected and then some, but the ancient Pokemon proved to be a kind and patient teacher, never once growing frustrated or angry with Ash even when he had to have a concept explained to him multiple times over. Ash thrived under his tutelage, and by the time he was ten years old, he had already learned how to understand Pokemon speech and was beginning to learn how to transfer his aura to another living being. 

Ash had also spent quite a bit of time training Froakie-or, as he referred to it since he technically wasn't allowed to _train_ him yet, per se, allowing Froakie to train himself. Their hard work had paid off, and Froakie soon evolved into a Frogadier, then into a powerful Greninja. Lucario had also assisted them in mastering their bond phenomenon form, which the jackal had teasingly dubbed "Ash-Greninja", much to their shared amusement and chagrin. So far, they had only tested in out in battle once, in a sparring match against Lucario. In the end, the battle had been a draw, but only because Lucario decided to call it off. Had it not been for that fact, Ash was still fairly certain that he and Greninja would have lost in the end. 

Of course, not all of their time was spent training, and Ash made sure to introduce Lucario to everything Pallet Town had to offer. Much like Greninja, Lucario was fond of the peaceful nature of the small town, admitting that he found it much more comfortable than the massive castle he had grown up in. Unfortunately, he also had the displeasure of meeting Gary Oak, and quickly developed the same distaste for the boy that Ash and Greninja felt. 

It was a Saturday afternoon, one week before Ash, Gary, and the two other trainers from Pallet Town, twins Melody and Brianna Parker, were set to receive their official starter Pokemon from Professor Oak. Ash was visiting the park with Greninja and Lucario, sitting underneath the shade of a tall oak tree as he tried to focus on sketching a nearby Psyduck-no easy feat considering the duck Pokemon kept disappearing underwater. As he was trying to sketch one of Psyduck's eyes, the distressed cry of a Pokemon suddenly jolted him out of his thoughts. Looking up, he saw Gary poking and prodding at an obviously angry Pikachu with a long stick, dodging the electric sparks the Mouse Pokemon was shooting toward him. 

"Come on, you can do better than that! Bet you can't hit me back!" Gary taunted, laughing as Pikachu growled furiously at him. 

In an instant, Ash was on his feet. Storming over toward his rival, he snatched the stick away from the taller boy, shouting, "Leave him alone!" 

At the sound of his voice, Gary and Pikachu both spun around to face him. "Oh, hey there, Ashy-boy. Come to watch the fun?" the brown-haired boy asked, smirking. 

"Leave Pikachu alone," Ash repeated, pouring all of his dislike for Gary into those three words. "What's he done to you? He's not doing any harm. Why can't you just let him be?" 

"Well..." Gary drawled, putting on an exaggerated thoughtful look. "It's not really so much that he's _done_ anything, but I thought we could have a little fun, you know?" 

"You think you're so funny," he sneered back, glaring daggers at the professor's grandson. "But you're nothing but a jerk and a bully, Gary. Go away and leave Pikachu alone." 

"Ha! And who's going to make me?" the taller boy asked smugly. 

" _I'd suggest you do as he says,_ " Lucario's voice cut into their argument, cold and forbidding. " _Unless you want us to tell Professor Oak what you were doing today. I'm sure he would be very interested to know how you've been treating the Pokemon around here._ " 

Gary's head whipped around, his eyes practically bulging out of his head when he saw Lucario. It would have been very funny had Ash not been so angry with his rival at that moment. 

"No way! Did you just _talk_?" he shouted incredulously. "Ashy-boy, tell me I'm not going crazy here. I swear that Pokemon just talked!" 

"Well done, Gary. It seems like going to school for all these years hasn't been a waste of time on you after all. You can tell when someone just talked," Ash sneered back. 

Greninja, Pikachu, and Lucario all laughed. Gary's face flushed red in embarrassment but, unable to think of a comeback, he quickly turned around and stormed toward the opposite end of the park. Rolling his eyes, Ash turned his back on his rival and focused his attention on Pikachu, who was still crouching down in the grass. 

"Hi there, Pikachu. Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?" he asked anxiously. 

" _No, no, I'm okay. He was just being annoying, that's all,_ " Pikachu reassured him. " _Thanks for the help, by the way. What's your name?_ " 

"My name's Ash! And these are my friends, Greninja and Lucario," Ash introduced himself and his two Pokemon companions cheerfully. 

" _Hello, Pikachu,_ " Lucario said kindly. 

" _Hey, there,_ " Greninja echoed, giving the electric mouse a small nod. 

"I'm going to become a Pokemon trainer in just one week! Greninja's going to be my first official Pokemon, but I'll still be picking a Kanto Pokemon to have as a starter too," Ash continued, feeling a wave of excitement at the thought of finally beginning his journey. "Lucario's not really going to be _my_ Pokemon, but he's staying with me anyway so he can teach me how to be an Aura Guardian!" 

" _Really? You're going to become an Aura Guardian?_ " Pikachu asked, blinking. Ash nodded. " _Wow. Aren't they supposed to be really rare, though? That's really cool that you're going to learn how to be one._ " 

"Thanks, Pikachu," Ash replied cheerfully, smiling brightly. "The training is kind of hard, but all the stuff I can do now is so cool! I can do so many things that I thought were just made-up stories before. I can even talk to Pokemon now!" 

" _Yes, and he does it at every opportunity. I think a few of the Pokemon at Professor Oak's ranch even taught him a few new words that his mother would not be happy to hear him saying,_ " Lucario interjected, giving Ash a half-stern, half-affectionate look. 

"Hey! But I thought ex-expanding my vocabulary was a good thing?" Ash complained. 

Lucario shook his head fondly. " _Well, yes, Ash, but you certainly don't need the f-word in your vocabulary._ " 

" _Oh, really?_ " Greninja interjected, a playful look entering his eyes. " _And what word would that be, exactly? Do you mean the f-word as in fun?_ " 

Ash laughed as a horrified look entered Lucario's eyes. "No, Greninja–" 

" _Alright, I think we get the point, Ash-_ " the jackal tried to interject, but to no avail-

"-it means the f-word as in fuck!" 


	14. A New Journey

On the day he was set to begin his Pokemon journey, Ash was up and raring to go at the crack of dawn. By five-thirty, he was already dressed and on his way downstairs, careful not to make too much noise in case he woke anyone up. At this time of the morning, the only other member of the household who was awake was Lucario, although that was simply because the ancient Pokemon was used to getting up at ungodly hours. Indeed, when Ash arrived downstairs, Lucario was already seated in the living room, looking wide awake despite the fact that the sun hadn't even risen yet. 

" _Good morning, Ash,_ " Lucario greeted him. " _All ready to go, I see._ " 

"Of course! I've been waiting for this day forever!" Ash said cheerfully. 

Lucario chuckled, patting him fondly atop his head. " _Well, I hope you're alright with waiting for at least a few more hours. The lab won't be open until ten-thirty, you know._ " 

"Hey! I'm not a Lillipup!" the raven-haired boy protested, ducking away from his mentor. 

" _Of course not, Ash,_ " the jackal replied, looking more than a little amused. " _Now, since you're already awake, we might as well do some meditation. I'd let you run around and play, but I'm afraid it's still a bit too early for that._ " 

Nodding, Ash sat down on the floor across from Lucario, crossing his legs and straightening his back as he had been taught. As he closed his eyes and began to breathe deeply, inhaling and exhaling slowly, he became aware of the world fading away around him. A sense of peace washed over him like a tall glass of water on a hot summer day. He was dimly aware of the excitement that had previously been whirling at the forefront of his mind, but it had been pushed to the back now, allowing him to think more clearly. 

" _That's enough for now,_ " he heard Lucario's voice say, sounding as though it were coming from the end of a long tunnel. " _Well done, Ash._ " 

Slowly, Ash opened his eyes again to find himself seated in the same position in his living room. Lucario was still seated beside him, and, as he looked around, he saw that Greninja had joined them and was lounging on the couch. The sky outside the window was also quite a bit lighter as well, and he guessed that he must have been meditating for quite a while. 

" _Damn, I think that's the longest I've seen you stay so focused yet,_ " Greninja remarked, grinning down at him. " _You've been sitting there for at least an hour and a half._ " 

" _Two hours, actually, he started about half an hour before you woke up,_ " Lucario corrected the frog Pokemon. He ruffled Ash's hair and added, " _Your concentration is improving by the day, Ash._ " 

"Thanks, but why do you keep petting me?" Ash complained. 

" _Sorry, Ash. Force of habit,_ " Lucario apologized. 

" _And you have to admit, your hair is very tempting to mess with,_ " Greninja added. Ash shot him a look, and he added, " _Oh, don't give me that. It's not like it can get any worse, can it?_ " 

"Hey! My hair isn't that bad!" he protested. 

" _No, Greninja has a point there, I'm afraid,_ " Lucario interjected, giving him a look of mingled sympathy and amusement. 

Ash sighed, knowing that they were right. No matter what he did, his hair never wanted to lie flat. It didn't necessarily bother him-after all, he had never taken his appearance into much consideration-but it did earn him a few questioning looks from his teachers when he arrived at school looking as though he had just rolled out of bed. He really didn't know why it mattered to them; as long as he was dressed appropriately and arrived on time, did it really matter what his hair looked like? 

Apparently taking pity on the child, Lucario consoled him, " _It's alright, Ash. Sir Aaron's hair was the exact same way. It used to drive Lady Rin insane._ " 

"Really?" Ash asked, grinning. Lucario didn't talk much about the relationship between Sir Aaron and Lady Rin, so he was always eager to hear more. "So were they like, you know...?" 

" _No, nothing like that,_ " the jackal answered. " _There were certainly others who thought that of them. However,_ _Sir Aaron was more interested in his duties as an Aura Guardian than anything and Lady Rin always said her love would always be all for the subjects of her kingdom, not for a single person. But they were very, very good friends._ " 

Ash nodded thoughtfully, pondering over Lucario's words in his mind. "I think that's good," he announced. "Romance is kind of weird if you ask me. But having friends is the greatest feeling in the world! Isn't it?" 

" _I couldn't agree with you more,_ " Greninja agreed, slinging an arm over the boy's shoulders. " _What about you, Lucario?_ " 

Lucario smiled fondly at them. " _There couldn't be anything better._ " 

* * *

Ash was the first to arrive at Professor Oak's lab that morning, along with Greninja and Lucario. Since most of the town was aware of the presence of the two Pokemon by now, neither of them bothered to stay hidden. Professor Oak allowed them inside while they waited for the rest of the starting trainers to arrive. He wondered why Gary hadn't shown up yet, having expected his rival to be the first one at the lab, then decided it didn't concern him. 

There were four Pokeballs placed on a small table, which Ash guessed were meant to hold the four Pokemon that were available for him, Gary, Melody, and Brianna to choose from. Still, he couldn't help feeling a twinge of confusion. Much like all the other regions, there were only three official starter Pokemon. What sort of Pokemon was in the fourth Pokeball? 

As he continued to ponder over this question, Ash suddenly became aware that something felt very, very wrong. A wave of distress and anger was coming from the Pokeball at the far end of the table, causing his aura to writhe and churn. In an instant, he was on his feet, racing over to the Pokeball. Whichever Pokemon was inside, it was clearly suffering. 

"Ash, wait! I wouldn't go near that one if I were you," Professor Oak warned him. 

"But Professor, there's something wrong," Ash protested. 

"Don't touch–" 

Before Professor Oak had even finished speaking, however, Ash had already picked up the Pokeball, pressing the catch to release the Pokemon inside. There was a flash of white light as a familiar yellow mouse Pokemon appeared in front of him, cheeks sparking angrily. 

"Pikachu?" Ash exclaimed. 

" _Hey, old man! This is for putting me in that blasted death trap!_ " Pikachu yelled, firing off a Thunderbolt at Professor Oak. 

"Pikachu, what are you doing here?" Ash asked, stunned. 

At the sound of his voice, the electric mouse turned around, his eyes widening in shock when he saw Ash, Lucario, and Greninja. " _It's you! You're the ones who saved me the other day! Er...I'm sorry, what were your names again?_ " 

"It's okay! I'm Ash, and these are my friends, Greninja and Lucario," the messy-haired boy replied cheerfully, gesturing to each Pokemon in turn. 

" _That's right. It's good to see all of you again,_ " Pikachu said, nodding. 

" _It's good to see you as well, Pikachu. Though if I may ask, how did you get inside that Pokeball in the first place?_ " Lucario inquired. 

As Pikachu opened his mouth to respond, Professor Oak groaned and slowly got back to his feet. "A-Ash, I told you not to touch that Pokeball. That Pikachu is very dangerous." 

"Dangerous? What do you mean? I know Pikachu and he's really nice," Ash argued, frowning. 

"I caught him two days ago when I found him lurking around my lab. Every time I let him out of his Pokeball, he shocks me," the aging researcher explained. 

" _Connect the dots, old man,_ " Pikachu snarked, to which Ash, Lucario, and Greninja had to suppress snorts of amusement. 

"I don't know what the problem is, Professor, I've been here for at least five minutes and Pikachu hasn't tried to shock me. Maybe it's just you," Ash suggested cheekily. 

Letting out a sigh of defeat, Professor Oak shook his head. "Well, Pikachu was meant to be the fourth Pokemon for you and the others to choose from, but since you seem to be getting along so well, I suppose you might as well take care of him." 

"Really? Awesome!" Ash said excitedly. Bending down, he added, "Hey, Pikachu, is that alright? Do you want to come on my journey with me?" 

" _Sure thing! As long as we're in agreement that I don't have to stay in a Pokeball,_ " Pikachu agreed. 

Ash grinned. "Don't worry, that's fine! Greninja and Lucario won't be staying in Pokeballs either." 

" _Really?_ " Pikachu asked, looking at the other two Pokemon with interest. " _So do you two not like Pokeballs either?_ " 

" _I don't mind them, but if I can, I'd much rather walk around,_ " Greninja answered. 

" _And I'm not much fond of enclosed spaces, especially after being trapped in a staff for over seven centuries,_ " Lucario added. 

Pikachu blinked, evidently trying to figure out whether Lucario was being serious or not. " _Oh, er, that's...um..._ " 

Lucario grinned, pleased by the effect his remark was having on Pikachu. " _Long story._ " 

"Well, seeing as you already have your starter, I suppose there isn't much point in making you wait around for the others. Why don't I give you your things and you can be on your way?" Professor Oak suggested. 

"Sure thing, Professor! Thanks!" the raven-haired boy replied cheerfully. 

Fifteen minutes later, Ash was heading out of the lab with his new Pokedex, a map, Pikachu's Pokeball, and a Pokeball that he had quickly used to officially catch Greninja as well. It had been agreed upon long ago that Lucario would not officially be caught by Ash but would still travel alongside him in order to continue training him as an Aura Guardian. Greninja had joked at the time that perhaps Lucario should consider catching Ash, to which the jackal had responded by grabbing a toy Pokeball and chasing the boy around the Ketchum household. 

" _So where are we off to first, Ash?_ " Pikachu asked from his perch on Ash's shoulder-coincidentally enough, the same one that had been claimed by Greninja when he was still a small Froakie. 

"Let's see..." Ash mused, checking over his map. "Got it! Let's head through Viridian Forest. Pewter City is just past Viridian Forest, and we can challenge the gym there!" 

" _Sounds good to me. I'd like to get a good battle in,_ " Greninja remarked. 

"Then it's settled! We're off to Pewter City!" he declared. "Come on, Greninja, Lucario. Bet you can't keep up with me!" 

Pocketing his Pokedex and map, Ash took off in the direction of Viridian Forest with Greninja and Lucario hot on his heels. As he ran, he wondered what sort of people and Pokemon he was destined to meet on his journey. How many would turn out to be sworn enemies, casual acquaintances, or lifelong friends? What sort of places would he visit along the way? Would the world be as impressive as his mother had always promised it would be-or perhaps even more so? 

A surge of excitement coursed through his veins, propelling him onward with a sudden burst of speed. It was the first day of the rest of his life, and Ash swore to himself right then and there that he was going to make the most of every second. 


	15. Sibling Rivalry

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Fallon Miller rolled her eyes, slamming her pillow over her head as the sound of her brother, Damian, banging on the door sounded from outside her room in the Pokemon Center. Even after two months, she still didn't see why her parents thought forcing the two of them to travel together had been a good idea. Every single day, Damian made sure to wake her up at the most ungodly hours imaginable so he could catch Pokemon. If this was what her parents had in mind when they told them that this would be a good sibling bonding experience, she was going to look into finding a new family. 

"Get up, Fallon! I want to catch more Pokemon and you're wasting the day away!" Damian's voice sounded from the hallway as he continued banging on the door. 

"I'm coming, Damian! For Arceus' sake, is it too much to ask that you give me a few minutes to get ready?" Fallon yelled back. 

"Well, hurry up, then. I'm tired of waiting for you to stop being lazy," he snapped. 

Groaning in annoyance, Fallon slowly got out of bed and walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Although only a year older than her, Damian had never shown any hesitation in asserting his perceived superiority. Ever since they were small children, he had taken every opportunity possible to boss her around. At first, it had started off with him being too controlling during games, telling her that she _had_ to play a certain character or that she wasn't doing something right. Now, at eleven and twelve years of age, it had reached the point where Fallon sometimes felt as though she couldn't even sit down without Damian finding something to criticize about her. 

Once she was finished getting ready, she grabbed her bag and stepped out into the hallway. She hadn't even made it two steps, however, when her brother yanked her by the arm and started pulling her down the hallway. Fallon winced in protest as his grip threatened to cut off the circulation to her arm. 

"Damian, _stop_! That hurts!" she exclaimed angrily, trying to twist free. 

He let go but then proceeded to shove her rather roughly, causing her to stumble back and forcing her to throw her hands out against the wall to stop herself from falling. Straightening up, Fallon dusted herself off and glared indignantly at her brother. 

"What was that for? Why do you have to do that all the time?" she asked furiously. 

"If you would move a little more quickly, then I wouldn't have to," Damian shot back. "I told you that I wanted to catch more Pokemon, didn't I? It would be nice if you actually listened to me for once." 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Fallon muttered, turning and walking down the hallway. 

"And where are you going now? The exit is the other way," he demanded. 

"If you want to catch more Pokemon so badly, then go for it. I want to have breakfast first," she called over her shoulder. 

She heard Damian sigh behind her. "Fine, but make sure you save me a blueberry muffin. It's the least you could do." 

"Whatever," Fallon replied dismissively. "See you later, I guess." 

Without waiting for a response, she continued on down the hallway, veering to the left into the cafeteria. At this time of the morning, there weren't many customers yet, which meant she had full access to most of the buffet. At the moment, the only other occupants in the cafe were a boy with messy black hair who looked to be close to her own age if a bit younger, a Pikachu, and two Pokemon that she knew from her studies to be a Greninja and a Lucario. Fallon felt a jolt of surprise to see a boy with such powerful-looking Pokemon, and two from entirely different regions no less, but they appeared to be busy, so she figured it would be best not to bother them. After grabbing an apple and a glass of orange juice as well as the muffin Damian had requested, she took a seat two tables away from the boy and his Pokemon and began to eat. 

_I should feed Charmander while I'm here too,_ Fallon thought, glancing down at the lone Pokeball on her belt. 

Pulling a small bowl out of her bag, she poured some of her fire-type's favorite Pokechow into it. Once she was satisfied that there would be enough to tide him over until lunch, she pulled Charmander's Pokeball from her belt and released the orange lizard Pokemon. 

"There you go, Charmander. Breakfast is ready," she said cheerfully. 

"Char! Charmander, char," Charmander replied happily, taking a pawful and swallowing it in one bite. 

" _How long do you suppose it will take to get to Pewter City?_ " a voice asked suddenly. 

Startled, Fallon looked up, glancing around the cafe. The voice had been much too deep to belong to the boy at the other table, but she couldn't see any other people in the cafe besides him. Was her mind playing tricks on her, perhaps? It wouldn't have been a surprise given the early hour. As she was looking around, trying to figure out where the voice had come from, she accidentally made eye contact with the raven-haired trainer. 

"Hi, there!" His voice, as she had expected, was considerably higher than the one she had heard not even two minutes ago. "Is everything okay?" 

"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, sorry," Fallon replied awkwardly, averting her eyes. "I just thought I might have heard something, that's all." 

" _Ah, that would have been me. I apologize for startling you,_ " Lucario spoke up, bowing slightly to her. 

Fallon laughed, rubbing the back of her neck. "No, it's okay. I'm kind of glad to know I actually did hear something. I thought I might be losing it for a minute, no thanks to my brother. He's the one who insisted on making me wake up at six in the morning." 

"Where _is_ your brother?" the boy asked, frowning. "You came in here alone." 

"He went out to catch Pokemon. That's why he wanted to get started so early," she explained, rolling her eyes. "I'm supposed to be saving this muffin for him, but if he doesn't show up by eight o'clock again, I'm going to eat it myself. Anyway, I'm Fallon Miller, and this is Charmander." 

"Charmander, char!" Charmander piped up. 

"Nice to meet you! I'm Ash Ketchum, and these are my friends, Greninja, Pikachu, and Lucario. Well, Lucario's not really my Pokemon, but he's staying with me so he can teach me how to become an Aura Guardian," the boy introduced himself eagerly. "I've also got a Pidgey, but she really doesn't like waking up early, so she's still sleeping for now. I'll feed her later, though." 

"Oh." Fallon blinked, startled by Ash's enthusiasm. "It's, uh, nice to meet you too." 

"Pika pika!" Pikachu replied happily. 

"Greninja, gren, ninja," Greninja greeted her, bowing. 

Ash grinned at her. "You must be on your Pokemon journey too, right? So that must mean Charmander was your first Pokemon, then. How long have you two been traveling together?" 

"I am and he is. We started traveling about two months ago," she answered. Rolling her eyes, she added, "Our parents made my brother and I travel together because they thought it would be a good bonding experience. I don't know if they ate something funny that day or something, but so far I don't feel particularly bonded with him." 

" _You've mentioned your brother twice now. Do the two of you not get along, then?_ " Lucario inquired. 

"That would be an understatement," Fallon told him, sighing. "He's a year older than me, so in his mind, that means he knows better than me about everything. I can't do anything without him bossing me around." 

"I'll bet that's really annoying," Ash remarked. 

"You can say that again," she agreed. 

They continued talking for another fifteen minutes or so before Ash excused himself and his Pokemon, saying that they had to get going to Pewter City. Fallon was a bit disappointed to see them leave so soon; she had enjoyed talking with Ash and wasn't looking forward to Damian's return. Still, she understood the desire to get to the next town as quickly as possible, so she simply wished them well and suggested they meet up again another time. 

It was well past eight o'clock by the time Damian returned, looking rather pleased with himself-even more pleased than usual if that was at all possible. He strode over to her table, snatching the muffin off the plate without bothering to thank her for saving it. Already being used to her brother's attitude, Fallon did her best not to let him annoy her and simply returned Charmander to his Pokeball, placing his now-empty bowl back into her bag. 

"You should really train Charmander more, you know. That thing's so weak, it can't even beat the easiest opponent," Damian snarked through a mouthful of muffin. 

"First of all, chew with your mouth closed, thanks," Fallon shot back, disgusted. "Second, I didn't ask for your input, Damian. Charmander's still small and he's doing just fine." 

"He got knocked out in one hit by that boy's Squirtle yesterday," her brother snorted. 

"Squirtle's a water-type, what do you expect? And he still beat that Oddish, didn't he?" she challenged. 

"Yeah, well, Oddish is a grass-type, right? Charmander should have beaten him," Damian sneered. 

Fallon huffed irritably. "Oh, I see, so it's not fine when Charmander loses to a Pokemon that has the type advantage over him but it's expected that Charmander will beat any Pokemon that he has the advantage over?" 

Damian gave a long-suffering sigh. "Fallon, I'm only trying to teach you what's best for you. A weak Pokemon has no place on any trainer's roster. You could be a great trainer if you stopped favoring weaklings all the time." 

"You don't know anything about what's best for me. And I don't need to take your advice on raising Pokemon either. Charmander is a great Pokemon, and he is _not_ a weakling," Fallon growled back. "Maybe you should start worrying about your own Pokemon, Damian, and let me worry about my own." 

To her relief, the conversation stopped after that, although Fallon could still feel Damian's eyes boring into her as he chewed crossly on his muffin. She stared down at Charmander's Pokeball, sighing internally. What Damian had said was _wrong_ , it just had to be. True, maybe Charmander didn't win every single battle, but that was to be expected, wasn't it? And he was still working hard and growing stronger every day. Just because he hadn't been born powerful didn't mean he wouldn't be one day. 

Anyway, what did Damian know about strength? He didn't even bother training his Pokemon; he only knew how to rely on natural power. If a Pokemon wasn't already capable of beating Mew as soon as he caught it (perhaps a slight exaggeration, but that was beside the point), he dismissed it as "weak" and "worthless" before sending it back out again, sometimes even throwing its Pokeball away as well. 

Letting out a sigh, Fallon turned her head to look out the window, thinking wistfully about how much better her life would have been if she'd had someone like Ash for a brother instead of Damian. 


	16. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. I will one day, though, just you wait.

The stars shone brightly in the clear night sky overhead as Ash lay down on the grass, trying to regulate his breathing after an intense training session with Lucario. His mentor had decided to work on honing his speed that afternoon, so Ash had spent the past three hours having footraces against Greninja. Of course, seeing as Greninja was one of the fastest Pokemon in the world, he hadn't stood much of a chance at winning, but Lucario kept him at it until he was able to stay on pace with the frog-ninja Pokemon for at least five minutes straight. Everything in his body ached by the end, but it had all been worth it. During the final race, Ash had managed to keep up with Greninja for five and a half minutes before his legs collapsed from underneath him, sending him sprawling into the grass. 

" _Not bad, Ash. For someone with such short legs, you can move quickly,_ " Pikachu remarked from his place on the stump he had claimed as a seat. 

"Ugh...thanks, Pikachu," Ash groaned, unsure whether to take the electric mouse's comment as a compliment or not. 

He felt Greninja reach around to help him sit up as a cold glass of water was pressed into his hand. Nodding in thanks to Lucario, who had been the one to give it to him, he took a long, slow sip, breathing a sigh of relief as he felt his temperature cool slightly. Once he was finished, he placed the empty cup on the ground and made to lie down again, only for the Aura Pokemon to stop him. 

"Lucario?" he questioned tiredly. 

" _You can't lie down yet, Ash. You need to stretch your legs out a bit,_ " Lucario said gently. " _I know you're tired, but if you lie down after running like that, your legs are going to cramp up._ " 

Instantly recognizing the danger, Ash nodded and struggled to his feet, wincing as he did so. Lucario was right; his leg muscles _had_ tightened up slightly during the time he had spent lying on the grass. His legs shook and he very nearly fell over again but was caught just in time by Greninja and his mentor. 

" _Are you okay, Ash?_ " Pidgey chirped, looking worried. " _You look like you're hurt._ " 

"Ah...no, I'm okay. Just a little sore, that's all. Thanks, Pidgey," Ash said as reassuringly as possible. His entire body certainly felt as though it had been set on fire, but he didn't think he was _injured_ , per se. Just a little overworked. "My legs feel like they're made of jelly, though." 

" _That's normal when you push yourself hard enough. Walk it off and they'll return to normal eventually,_ " the Aura Pokemon told him. 

Ash nodded, leaning against Greninja's shoulder as he took a tentative step forward. "Did I at least do alright today?" 

Lucario smiled and squeezed his side gently. " _You were incredible today, Ash. I'm proud of you._ " 

Ash smiled brightly, feeling a surge of joy–it meant a ridiculous amount to him that he was. 

" _Now, I want you to breathe in slowly while you walk. Three steps for each inhale, and three again for each exhale,_ " Lucario instructed. " _It's going to be hard because your mind is naturally going to want to inhale as much air as quickly as possible. But doing it this way will be better._ " 

Together, the three of them began to make their way around the clearing. Ash walked slowly, supported by his friends, breathing in and out the way Lucario had instructed. It certainly was difficult, but he fought against the temptation to start gasping for air. Eventually, however, his patience paid off as his breathing returned to normal and he regained the ability to walk without support. 

"Finally! That feels a lot better!" Ash exclaimed happily, breathing a sigh of relief. 

Skipping over to the log he had placed his bag beside, he began pulling out several food bowls for Greninja, Pikachu, and Pidgey, which he filled with two cups each of their favorite types of Pokeblock and Pokechow. Lucario typically gathered berries for himself from the land and as such didn't like the idea of accepting food from another person or Pokemon–although he had made an exception for half of the chocolate bar Ash had bought at the Pokemon Center in Viridian City. When he was done feeding his Pokemon, he pulled out a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for himself. 

"Eat up, everyone! We've got more training to do tomorrow, so make sure you give yourselves lots of energy, okay?" Ash told his Pokemon enthusiastically. 

" _You got it, Ash!_ " Pikachu replied, giving him a thumbs up. 

" _So who will you be using against the Pewter City gym leader?_ " Greninja asked, taking a bite of his own food. Ash had never quite been able to replicate the recipe his mother used for water-types that Greninja loved so much, but the frog-ninja Pokemon assured him that his own creations were perfectly fine. 

He thought for a moment, pondering over the question. "Pikachu and Pidgey, definitely. Lucario I can't use because he technically isn't my Pokemon, plus he's too strong anyway. I think you're a bit too strong for the first gym too, but if things get bad, I'll switch you in for one of them. But I think Pikachu and Pidgey can handle it, right guys?" 

" _Right!_ " Pikachu agreed. 

" _You bet we can!_ " Pidgey piped up. 

Ash smiled happily, reaching over and petting the two smaller Pokemon gently. Although they hadn't been with him for very long, at least not compared to Greninja and Lucario, they were growing stronger every day and he was confident they would be able to take on the first gym without much of a problem. The only problem he could foresee was that Pidgey was a flying-type, thereby making her a poor matchup against a rock-type gym such as the Pewter City gym. That, and there was a good chance the gym leader there used a member of the Geodude line, which would make Pikachu's electric-type moves useless. 

Evidently, Lucario had thought of the same thing, for he remarked, " _If you're going to use Pikachu and Pidgey, you should consider teaching them moves that will be good against rock-type Pokemon. Right now, Pikachu's strongest move is Thunderbolt and Pidgey's is Gust, neither of which are likely to do well against the Pewter gym since the gym leader there likely uses a Geodude. You should consider teaching Iron Tail and Steel Wing or, if you'd like, you could try teaching Pikachu Hidden Power._ " 

"Hidden Power?" Ash repeated. He vaguely remembered the move from one of his schoolbooks, but he couldn't recall much about it. 

" _It's a move whose type and power depends on the Pokemon using it,_ " the Aura Pokemon explained. " _Hidden Power is a good way to get some offensive coverage because a Pokemon can learn a move with a typing that they normally wouldn't be able to._ " 

"Oh! So maybe Pikachu could learn a grass-type or a water-type Hidden Power?" he asked, finally getting what Lucario was trying to say. 

" _Exactly. Well done, Ash,_ " Lucario praised him. 

Ash grinned happily, then thought for a few moments. "I...I think Hidden Power sounds like a good move, yeah. But I think I should also teach Iron Tail too. It sounds like Pikachu could learn a Hidden Power with any typing, so he might not get one that's good against the Pewter gym. Is that okay, Pikachu?" 

" _Sure, no problem. I'm always up for learning a new move,_ " the electric mouse answered, still munching away at his Pokechow. 

They remained there for a long while after that, talking over their plans for the gym battle. At one point, Ash leaned back, stretching his arms behind his head. As he did so, his gaze tilted up toward the sky, and he felt his eyes widen. The stars were shining brighter than ever, twinkling merrily overhead, almost as if they were laughing and dancing. 

"Guys, look! Look at the stars! Aren't they so cool?" he asked excitedly. 

" _They certainly are,_ " Lucario agreed, chuckling fondly. 

" _Hey, look! That kind of looks a bit like a Bulbasaur, doesn't it?_ " Greninja asked, pointing up toward a spot in the sky. Ash looked up as well, quickly seeing the Bulbasaur constellation as well. 

"It does! That's so awesome!" he cheered before noticing another one. "Hey, that one kind of looks like an Eevee!" 

" _Isn't there a song about stars that kids like to sing? I think I heard a few children singing it once,_ " Pidgey spoke up. 

"There is! It goes like this!" Ash replied. Taking a deep breath, he began to sing softly: 

" _Twinkle, twinkle, little star_

_How I wonder what you are_

_Up above the world so high_

_Like a diamond in the sky_

_Twinkle, twinkle, little star_

_How I wonder what you are_." 

One by one, the rest of his friends joined in, their voices filling the night air as they sang together, not caring if anyone overheard them. As Ash's countertenor mixed with Lucario's baritone, he thought the stars seemed to glow even more brightly, almost as if they were asking for an encore. 


	17. Into Pewter City

It took another two days to reach Pewter City. During that time, Ash trained with his Pokemon at every opportunity possible, wanting to make sure that they would be ready for anything the Pewter City gym might throw their way. Although they wouldn't be partaking in the actual battle, Greninja and Lucario still trained alongside Pikachu and Pidgey, even assisting the newer members of the team. Greninja worked with Pidgey on increasing her speed while Lucario spent several hours teaching Pikachu how to channel his energy properly in order to use moves other than electric-type ones. In the end, their hard work had paid off, and Pikachu mastered both Iron Tail and Hidden Power (which, fortunately, turned out to be grass-type for him) while Pidgey had evolved into Pidgeotto and learned Steel Wing.

"Look! There it is!" Ash exclaimed excitedly as the Pewter City gym came into view.

" _Ready for your first gym battle, Ash?_ " Greninja asked from beside him, slinging an arm around the boy's shoulders. 

"You bet! We've been ready to go for ages, right Pikachu?" he asked, grinning 

" _Yep! Those rock-types don't stand a chance!_ " Pikachu agreed, flexing his muscles. 

Lucario laughed lightly from Ash's other side. " _I like your confidence, Pikachu. I'm sure you and Pidgeotto are going to do wonderfully today._ "

As they continued along down the street, Ash took in the sights and sounds of Pewter City. It was a bit larger than Pallet Town (which, to be fair, wasn't saying much), but it still had the same down-to-earth vibe as his hometown. Most of the city was surrounded by rugged mountains and rocks, which made sense considering the gym's typing specialty. The mountain range was quite impressive, and he wondered what sort of Pokemon might be hiding inside 

"Let's go check out the mountains when after the gym battle! I want to meet some of the Pokemon that live there," he suggested excitedly. 

" _Sounds good to me. I'm always up for finding a new teammate,_ " Greninja agreed. 

" _Indeed, and climbing those mountains would be a good way to increase your endurance,_ " Lucario pointed out. 

Pikachu rolled his eyes playfully. " _Leave it to you to always be thinking about training, Lucario,_ " he remarked. 

Far from being perturbed, Lucario simply smiled serenely and replied, " _Indeed, and that is why I have been able to attain the level of power I have. If you train your body day in and day out, you too will be able to reach your full potential one day. Others may tell you that there are shortcuts you can take, but you shouldn't listen to any of them. Hard work and dedication is the only way to go._ " 

Suddenly, the Aura Pokemon paused, the appendages on his head rising upward. At the same time, Ash became aware of the presence of two approaching trainers. He was about to turn around to see who it was when the sound of arguing reached his ears. 

"I was only doing you a favor! Charmander is too weak, and you need to learn to accept that! You're not training him the way you should be!" the first voice, a boy who sounded to be close to Ash's own age if a bit older, was saying. 

"I didn't ask for your help, Damian! And there's nothing wrong with the way I'm training Charmander!" his companion retorted angrily, and Ash felt a stab of shock. Even after only one conversation, he recognized Fallon's voice. 

Turning around, Ash saw Fallon walking beside a tall boy with long blue hair, a pink t-shirt covered by a brown vest, and a pair of sunglasses perched on his forehead. The two siblings were utterly engrossed in their argument, and as such hadn't noticed Ash and his Pokemon up ahead. Damian wore an expression of cold disdain as he looked down at his sister, while Fallon seemed ready to either swing at him or tear her own hair out at any given moment. 

"Nothing wrong? That puny little thing can barely defeat any opponent!" Damian scoffed. "Face it, Fallon. He's never going to amount to anything. Training him is a complete waste of time, and you're stupid for even thinking otherwise." 

" _Arceus above, what a bully that boy is,_ " Greninja remarked in disapproval as Lucario narrowed his eyes in anger. 

"Alright, so maybe Charmander doesn't win every single battle. So what? He's doing his best and that's all I'd ever ask of him," Fallon shot back. "And I don't see how it's any of your concern anyway. He's my Pokemon, not yours, so it's not your problem if he wins every single match or none of them at all. Maybe you should stop worrying about me and start focusing more on your own Pokemon." 

"I don't know why you're so bothered. Nurse Joy fixed him up just fine, didn't she?" Damian snapped. 

"Yes, she did, no thanks to you," she growled. "It's not about whether he's fine now or not! There was no reason for you to have Vaporeon attack him!" 

Damian seemed to be about to respond before he caught sight of Ash, Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu. "Hey, what are you doing over there? Are you eavesdropping on us or something?!" he shouted angrily. 

"Damian, what are you–?" Fallon started to ask before she too noticed Ash and his Pokemon. Her face broke into a delighted smile. "Oh! Hi there, Ash, everyone! I didn't think I'd be running into all of you again so soon." 

Damian rounded on his sister. "Do you know them?" 

Fallon gave him an irritated glare. "Not that it's any of your concern, but yes. We met a few days ago in Viridian City while you were out catching Pokemon. I–" 

"Shut up. I didn't ask for the story," he cut her off. Whirling on Ash again, he snarled, "I believe I asked you a question, punk. Why are you eavesdropping on me and my sister? Answer me!" 

"Like I'd eavesdrop on you," Ash scoffed. 

"Oh, really? So you just happened to be standing around like a bunch of idiots in the middle of the road for no reason?" Damian asked mockingly. He narrowed his eyes. "I don't believe that for a second! Tell me the truth or else!" 

"For Arceus' sake, would you just cut it out?" Fallon exclaimed, sounding exasperated. "We're in the middle of the city, Damian, it's only natural that someone is going to overhear us whether you like it or–" 

Before she could finish speaking, Damian suddenly grabbed Ash by the shoulders and began shaking him very violently. In the next instant, he found himself on the receiving end of an Iron Tail from Pikachu, an Ice Beam from Greninja, and an Aura Sphere from Lucario. As Damian staggered back and fell to the ground, groaning in pain, the three Pokemon stood in front of their trainer-or, in Lucario's case, student-protectively. 

"Damian! What did you do that for?" Fallon shouted furiously. "Arceus above, just leave Ash alone! He's not doing any harm!" 

" _If you touch him one more time, hell, if you even_ look _at him the wrong way one more time, we'll be sending what's left of you home to your mother in five separate boxes,_ " Greninja snarled. 

Although Damian couldn't understand exactly what Greninja was saying, it was impossible to miss the rage in his eyes or the Night Slash the frog Pokemon had pressed up against his throat. His eyes widened in fear as he tried to back away, but a Psychic from Lucario kept him in place. 

" _Apologize to Ash,_ " Lucario growled, his eyes flashing. Upon hearing the jackal speak in human tongue, Damian's eyes practically bugged out of his head. 

" _Now!_ " the Aura Pokemon spat. 

"I-I'm s-sorry," he stuttered. 

" _And what are you sorry for?_ " Lucario demanded. 

"I-I'm s-sorry for grabbing you and s-shaking you, A-Ash," Damian managed to choke out. 

" _What do you think, Ash? Is that good enough?_ " Pikachu asked. 

Ash shrugged, rubbing his still-throbbing arms. "I suppose it will probably have to be for now. I doubt I'll be getting much better out of him anyway." 

Nodding, Greninja and Lucario stepped back, albeit very reluctantly. They didn't take their eyes off of Damian, however, nor did they move away from their protective stance in front of Ash. Damian slowly got back up to his feet and dusted himself off, his face red with anger and humiliation as he whirled on his sister. 

"Thanks for nothing! You made me look like an idiot!" he spat. 

"That was your own–" 

"Save it, you worthless piece of trash! Arceus, if I had an apple for every time you've made my life hell simply by existing, I'd be able to end world hunger! You know what, I'm going to go catch some more Pokemon, and don't you even _think_ about following me! I don't want to see your face for the rest of the day!" Damian snarled. 

Before anyone else could say or do anything, he spun around in the direction he and his sister had come from and stormed off. Fallon watched him go for a moment before throwing her hands up in the air, letting out an incoherent scream of frustration and anger. A moment later, she turned back to Ash and his friends, looking utterly exhausted. 

"I'm sorry about that," she sighed. "He's been driving me mad all day." 

Lucario winced sympathetically. " _I know you said you don't get along with your brother, but I must admit, I didn't expect things to be so..._ " 

"Terrible?" Fallon supplemented, smiling ruefully. "Yeah. And it's only getting worse too. At this point, I'm pretty positive he hates my guts. But never mind that for now. Are you okay, Ash?" 

"I'm fine," Ash reassured her because he truly _was_ fine. "But what happened between you two? We heard some of what was going on, and it seems like things got pretty...well, intense. Is Charmander okay? What happened to him?" 

"Charmander's fine. Nurse Joy really did fix him up as good as new," she answered, smiling gratefully at his concern for the fire-type. "As for what happened, well, he got on the wrong end of a Hydro Pump." 

" _How did that happen?_ " Pikachu asked with Ash quickly translating for Fallon. 

She let out a sigh. "Earlier today, I decided to do a bit of training with Charmander. We've been working on Flamethrower for a couple of weeks now, so I set up a few targets for him to practice on. Nothing living, just a few rocks and dead branches. While we were practicing, Damian came by and decided to have his Vaporeon attack Charmander with Hydro Pump." 

"What?!" Ash exclaimed in outrage with Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu echoing his sentiment. 

"Yeah. As you can probably imagine, I was pretty pissed at him for that. I'd have liked nothing more than to punch his lights out, but the attack knocked Charmander unconscious and I wanted to get him to Nurse Joy to get him checked out," Fallon replied bitterly. "Luckily, there was nothing seriously wrong with him. I confronted Damian about it, but all he did was tell me that he was helping me out by teaching me that Charmander was too weak, and, well, you pretty much know what happened after that." 

Ash felt a twinge of sympathy for the ginger-haired girl. He had thought he'd had it bad with Gary, but the way Damian behaved made the professor's grandson seem like the greatest gift Arceus had ever bestowed upon the world. Even worse, Damian was supposed to be Fallon's brother. Ash couldn't imagine ever treating one of his family the way he treated her. 

"You know you're not worthless, right?" he spoke up again. "You're really awesome and really nice too, Fallon. Damian's an idiot for being so mean to you." 

" _He's right, you know,_ " Lucario said. Placing a paw on Fallon's shoulder, he continued gently, " _I hope you know that you don't deserve anything he says or does to you. There is nothing,_ nothing _, that justifies him treating you the way he does._ " 

She gave them a sad smile. "Thanks, Ash, Lucario. That means a lot, really." 

"Have you tried telling your parents about what's going on? They might be able to help," Ash suggested. 

"Unfortunately, I've learned the hard way _not_ to do that," she answered, wincing. "Back when we were nine and ten years old, we were at the park one day and Damian threw me off the swings. I wasn't too badly hurt-just a scraped elbow and knee-but I still went and told my parents. They scolded him, and when they finally let him go, he came back and started screaming at me about how stupid I was and telling me that I was nothing but an ugly little tattletale that nobody liked. In front of at least fifteen other kids, mind you, all of whom apparently thought that what he said was the funniest thing they'd ever heard." 

Her eyes flashed with a mixture of rage, sadness, and humiliation at the memory, her hands shaking slightly. "We knew those kids from school, and most of them were in my class. You can imagine the sort of teasing I had to deal with for months after that. For about three months, most of them wouldn't even call me by my name. It was always 'Snitch' or 'Tattletale' or something of the like. Even my teacher slipped up one day and called me Tattletale while taking attendance, but she at least apologized for it and gave me a piece of candy to cheer me up. So after that, I learned not to say anything when Damian did something to upset me because it only ever made things worse." 

" _I'm so sorry, Fallon,_ " Lucario sighed sadly with Greninja and Pikachu expressing similar sentiments. 

"It's alright, it happened a long time ago. I've moved past it now. I just don't really like thinking about it," she answered with a shrug. Shaking her head, she grinned cheerfully and continued, "Anyway, enough about my monster of a brother. I assume you're on your way to challenge the Pewter City gym, right? If you are, I'm heading that way myself, so we could all go down together if you'd like." 

"Sure!" Ash agreed happily. "That sounds awesome! You can challenge the gym first too if you'd like. I don't mind having to wait a little bit longer. You're our friend and friends should always put each other first!" 

"Alright, then. Thank you, Ash," Fallon replied, smiling brightly. "We'll make sure to put on a good show for all of you." 

Together, they continued on the path toward the Pewter City gym, ready to take on whatever challenges the upcoming battle might throw their way. 


	18. Rock-Type Showdown

The lights in the Pewter City gym were out when Ash, Fallon, and the Pokemon entered, shrouding the battlefield in darkness. Thanks to his aura vision, however, Ash was able to detect the presence of a teenage boy at the opposite end of the gym. This person, he assumed, was the Pewter City gym leader. He also noticed eight children seated in the upper row of what must have been the gym's stands; were they family members of the gym leader, perhaps? 

"Hello," he called out into the darkness. "We came here for a gym battle today. If the lights aren't working, we can come back another time after they've been fixed." 

As if in response, at that moment, the lights suddenly flickered on. For the first time, Ash was able to get a good look at the Pewter City gym leader. Across the battlefield from him stood a tall boy of about fifteen years old with tan skin, dark brown hair, and, clearly visible even from his vantage point, extremely calloused hands. The faces of the children up in the stands were also revealed, and Ash noted that they bore several striking similarities to the teenager across from him. 

_So they must be siblings of his, then,_ he thought to himself. 

"That was just a trick to scare new trainers," the older boy explained. "My name is Brock, and I'm the Pewter City gym leader." 

"Nice to meet you," Ash replied cheerfully. "I'm Ash Ketchum, and these are my friends, Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu. I just started my Pokemon journey, so this will be my first gym battle." 

" _Hi, there,_ " Pikachu said, waving. 

" _Hello,_ " Greninja echoed with a small bow. 

" _Good afternoon,_ " Lucario greeted Brock. 

At the sound of Lucario's voice, Brock's jaw fell open in shock. "You-you can talk?!" 

" _Yes,_ " the Aura Pokemon sighed, evidently weary of the constant shock his ability to speak in human tongue seemed to elicit from every passing trainer. " _It's an ability I picked up after years of training my aura._ " 

"I see," Brock responded, recovering quickly from his shock. "That's quite impressive, I must say." 

"My name's Fallon Miller," Fallon spoke up, introducing herself. "I've just become a trainer too, so this will also be my first gym battle." 

"Very well, then," the brown-haired teenager said politely. "Which of you will I be facing first, then?" 

"Me," she answered. 

Brock nodded. "And how many Pokemon do you have with you right now, Fallon?" 

"Right now, only two," Fallon admitted. "I haven't really gotten around to catching too many." 

"That's alright. In that case, we'll have a two-on-two battle," Brock said kindly. Turning to one of the boys up in the stands, he called out, "Forrest, will you come and referee our match?" 

"You got it, Brock!" a boy who looked to be oldest among the children up in the stadium called back, flashing a thumbs up. 

Ash walked over to the stands with Greninja, Pikachu, and Lucario as Forrest leaped down onto the sidelines of the battlefield, nodding briefly to them as he passed. Taking a seat in the front row, he tapped his fingers against the metal bench, feeling his heart racing with excitement. Although he wouldn't be partaking in the battle, he had never seen a gym battle in person, and there was something just as thrilling about being in the stands as he imagined it would be standing across from Brock when his turn came. Greninja noticed his excitement and grinned at him. 

" _Looking forward to the match, Ash?_ " the frog Pokemon asked. 

"You bet! I've never gotten to see a gym battle before. I can't wait to see what it's like!" Ash said happily. 

" _I'm looking forward to it myself,_ " Lucario admitted, his eyes gleaming. " _Of course, I've seen plenty of battles before back in my time, but this is far more...refined than the ones I knew._ " 

" _Refined? What do you mean?_ " Pikachu asked curiously. 

" _Back in those days, battles were every man-or, well, Pokemon-for themselves. There were no terms agreed upon before the start of the battle,_ " Lucario explained. " _Which meant that more often than not, you could find yourself facing at least a four-on-one match. Not to mention it was far more common to fight to kill, which I will hazard a guess and say that this isn't the case for gym battles._ " 

"Oh no, definitely not," Ash agreed, wincing at the thought. "You'd go to jail for a long time these days if you ever tried to kill someone else's Pokemon. Or any Pokemon, really." 

Turning back to the battlefield, he saw that Fallon had taken her place on the opposite side from Brock. Even from where he sat, he could clearly make out the nervousness in her posture, her hands wringing together and her eyes darting from side to side. Her legs were starting to tremble as well, and she began to open and close her right fist as though trying to regain feeling in her fingers. 

" _Poor thing,_ " Greninja murmured, looking worried. " _She looks petrified._ "

" _No thanks to her brother, I'm sure,_ " Pikachu remarked, a note of anger entering his voice. " _Being around him probably hasn't exactly done wonders for her self-esteem. She's probably thinking she's going to fail her Pokemon._ " 

Without thinking, Ash jumped out of his seat, leaping over the railing and back onto the battlefield. He knew that he wasn't supposed to be on the field right before a match, but at that moment, he didn't care. Fallon needed someone to be there for her, and he was going to make sure to support her. 

"Fallon!" he called out, quickly getting her attention. "Fallon, don't look so worried! The battle hasn't even started yet. You don't have to freak out yet." 

"That's easy enough for you to say," she groaned. "You're not the one about to have a gym battle in five seconds." 

"Maybe not," Ash agreed. "But that doesn't mean I don't get how you feel. I'm a trainer just like you, remember? So is Brock, even if he's a bit different from you or me. And it's okay to be nervous. Everyone gets a little bit scared before a battle; I'll bet even Lance does. Maybe you'll completely mess up. Maybe everything that could possibly go wrong will go wrong. But you've still got to just go out there and do it." 

"I know," Fallon murmured, her eyes flickering briefly to his face. "But...what if I mess up? My Pokemon have been working so hard for this day, and I'd hate to let them down." 

"Then that's okay! We all mess up from time to time," he reassured her, smiling brightly. "All that matters is that when you fall down, you get back up again. And again, and again, and again. As many times as it takes until you finally come out on top! That's what separates the good trainers from the great ones. After all, lights always shine their brightest in darkness, right?" 

She blinked. "I...I suppose that's true..." 

"Right!" Ash replied, giving her an encouraging nod. "And don't forget that we're all supporting you. No matter what comes next, whether you win or lose, we'll be standing behind you. Don't worry. I know you can do it."

"Fallon." Brock's voice sounded much closer, and Ash turned to see that the Pewter City gym leader had come over to their side of the field. "It doesn't really matter whether you win or lose. That isn't what a gym battle is about–it's not what _any_ battle is about. And truthfully, a badge is nothing more than a small scrap of metal that someone decided you had to collect in order to enter the league championship. At the end of the day, what truly matters is whether you've grown alongside your Pokemon. You'll become a much better trainer if you lose and learn a few lessons every so often than if you win all the time and learn nothing." 

For a moment, Fallon didn't reply. Finally, however, she took a deep breath, exhaling slowly and turning back to Ash and Brock, a more confident look entering her eyes. 

"Alright. I'm ready now," she stated, sounding far more sure of herself. 

"Excellent," Brock said, smiling kindly at her. "Then in that case, let's get started." 

Ash returned to his place in the stands between Greninja and Lucario as Brock went back to his side of the field. As he sat down, he felt Lucario pat him on the shoulder. Down on the battlefield, he could still see a trace of anxiety in Fallon's posture, but she was making a clear effort not to let it overwhelm her again. 

"The gym battle between the Pewter City gym leader, Brock, and the challenger, Fallon Miller, is about to begin," Forrest announced. "Each side will have the use of two Pokemon. The match will end when either side's Pokemon are unable to continue. Furthermore, only the challenger is allowed to substitute Pokemon." 

At that, Lucario gave Ash a questioning look. " _Why only the challenger?_ " 

Ash shrugged, having never known the reason for the rule himself, but Greninja answered, " _I suspect it's because gym leaders are supposed to help nurture trainers' growth, not relentlessly crush any newbie that crosses their path. And let's be honest, they'd all be capable of it. You have to go through some pretty intense training in order to qualify for being a gym leader. And I expect it's also because it's a good way to let trainers learn new strategies involving Pokemon substitution._ " 

" _That makes sense,_ " Lucario agreed. 

Down on the battlefield, Brock had already revealed his first Pokemon. Ash recognized the small rock with long arms as Geodude, one of the most common rock-type Pokemon in the world. Geodude typically weren't known for their strength, which he supposed was part of the reason Brock had selected him for his gym team. After all, it wouldn't do much good if the first Pokemon a new trainer had to face in a gym battle was a Mega Tyranitar or something of the like. He glanced over at Fallon, wondering what her first choice would be. 

A moment later, he got his answer. Pulling a Pokeball off her belt, she called out, "Staryu, come on out!" 

There was a flash of white light as a brown starfish-like Pokemon with a red jewel where a face might otherwise have been materalized in front of Fallon. Ash grinned, recognizing the water-type from the class field trip to the aquarium when he was six years old. Fallon had made a good first choice. 

"You may have the first move, Fallon," Brock offered graciously. 

"Thanks, Brock. Alright, Staryu, let's start things off with Water Gun!" Fallon commanded. 

"Dodge it, Geodude!" Brock countered quickly. 

Staryu fired off a jet of water toward Geodude, with the rock and ground-type dodging out of the way at the last second. The Water Gun slammed harmlessly into the wall as Geodude hovered off to the side, grinning. Of course, Staryu didn't have a face and as such couldn't have any sort of expression, but Ash could still feel the mingled frustration and amusement from the Star Shape Pokemon. 

" _Is that all you've got?_ " Geodude taunted. 

" _You wish. I'm just getting started,_ " Staryu growled back. 

"Rapid Spin!" Fallon called out. 

"Hold it right there, Geodude," Brock ordered. 

" _Hold it?_ " Pikachu repeated, looking utterly bewildered. " _What's he playing at? Why isn't he trying to dodge or fight back?_ " 

His question was soon answered, however, when Geodude suddenly reached out and grabbed the spinning water-type, gripping them tightly. Staryu struggled and writhed violently, but the Rock Pokemon held on strong, not giving a single inch. And unfortunately for Staryu, they were facing away from Geodude and, therefore, couldn't sneak in a close-range attack. Geodude took advantage of the Star Shape Pokemon's temporary immobility to strike them with several rapid-fire Rock Throw attacks. 

"Staryu!" the young girl exclaimed worriedly. "Staryu, you've got to get yourself out of there!" 

"It's over," Brock commanded. "Geodude, throw Staryu!" 

"Water Gun!" Fallon ordered, her eyes flashing with worry. 

It was a last-second decision, borne of clear desperation, but it worked. As Geodude flung Staryu away, somehow, the water-type managed to twist itself around to get a decently close-range Water Gun off. The attack struck the Rock Pokemon directly in the face, sending him flying backward into the wall. At the same time, Staryu came crashing back down to the ground. Both Pokemon remained lying on the battlefield, and Ash didn't need his aura to know that they had been knocked unconscious. 

"Both Geodude and Staryu are unable to battle! Trainers, please switch out your Pokemon," Forrest requested. 

"Thanks, Staryu. You were awesome," Fallon said, smiling softly as she recalled her fallen water-type. 

"Well done, Geodude. You've earned yourself a good rest," Brock said, doing the same for his own Pokemon. Pulling out another Pokeball, he called out, "Onix, you're up next!" 

Fallon's eyes widened as Onix appeared in front of her, which Ash couldn't blame her for. At almost thirty feet in height, the Rock Snake Pokemon was a positively fearsome sight to anyone who hadn't come across it before. She stared up at it, biting her lip in obvious worry, and he remembered suddenly that she had said she only had two Pokemon available to fight. Which meant...

" _Her last Pokemon is Charmander,_ " Lucario stated, looking grim. " _That's not going to be a good matchup against Onix._ " 

However, it seemed that Fallon wasn't ready to throw in the towel just yet. "Charmander, let's get going!" 

There was another flash of white light as the small orange lizard appeared on the battlefield. At the sight of the giant rock-type looming over him, his eyes widened almost comically. 

" _Holy Arceus! How did that thing get in here?_ " Charmander exclaimed. 

"Charmander, this isn't going to be an easy fight, but I have full faith in you," Fallon said, smiling encouragingly. "So let's do this together, alright?" 

" _You got it!_ " Charmander agreed enthusiastically. 

"We'll be taking the first move this time," Brock stated. "Onix, use Slam!" 

"Dodge and then use Flamethrower!" Fallon countered. 

Moving with surprising speed for a Pokemon of his size, Onix began charging toward Charmander. Before he could slam himself down onto the smaller Pokemon, however, the lizard-like Pokemon rolled out of the way before sending a Flamethrower in Onix's direction. The attack hit its mark, but given that Onix was part rock-type, it barely seemed to affect him. 

"Fire-type moves aren't going to do much against my Onix," the older trainer informed her. 

"I know that, but Flamethrower is Charmander's best attack. Besides, even minimal damage adds up," she pointed out. 

" _Yeah, and learning Hydro Pump didn't exactly work out,_ " Charmander snarked. Ash grinned to himself, both at Charmander's comment and the mental image of the small lizard using such a powerful water-type attack. 

"Let's go for another Flamethrower, Charmander!" Fallon ordered. 

"Rock Slide!" Brock shouted. 

Once again, Charmander sent a jet of flames flying toward the Rock Snake Pokemon, who made no attempt to dodge even as he was struck straight in the face. As soon as the smoke had cleared, Onix let out a roar, his body glowing white as several heavy-looking boulders began falling from the sky toward Charmander. He managed to dodge most of them, but tripped at the last second and was struck by the final two medium-sized rocks. Somehow, he managed to remain standing, but it was easy to see that he was in pain, his body scratched and bruised. 

"Oh no, Charmander! Are you okay?" Fallon exclaimed, sounding horrified. "Do you still want to continue?" 

" _I...I want..._ " Charmander said through gritted teeth, his entire body heaving as he fought to stay upright. 

" _He can't do it,_ " Lucario murmured, watching the small fire-type worriedly. " _He's not going to be able to keep this up for much longer._ " 

And at that moment, Fallon seemed to come to the same conclusion. As Brock ordered another Slam from Onix, she cried out, "Stop!" 

Onix froze in his tracks as everyone in the gym turned to the ginger-haired girl. Fallon raced over to Charmander, who had dropped down onto his side, and scooped him up gently in her arms. 

"We can't continue on like this, Charmander. I know how much we've both been looking forward to this, but this isn't a battle we're going to win," she stated softly. 

Charmander looked up at her, and Ash could feel the sadness and guilt coming from the Kanto fire starter. " _I'm sorry, Fallon._ " 

Although she couldn't understand exactly what he had said, the tone of his voice left little doubt as to what he had been trying to convey. Giving Charmander a reassuring smile, she replied warmly, "You don't have to be sorry! You did your best, Charmander. I couldn't have asked for more from you." 

Tapping the now-sleeping fire-type gently on the side of the head, she recalled him to his Pokeball. Straightening up again, she stood up and faced Brock. In a clear voice that rang out across the battlefield, she announced calmly, "I forfeit the match." 

"Very well, then. In that case, the battle goes to Brock, the gym leader," Forrest declared. 

Ash, along with his Pokemon, leaped down onto the field to meet Fallon. He was somewhat surprised to realize that, upon sensing her emotions through his aura, she didn't appear to be too upset by her loss. There was a small bit of disappointment, naturally, but it was overpowered by a sense of acceptance, determination, and a desire to get Charmander and Staryu to the nearest Pokemon Center as quickly as possible. She stood tall and proud, her head held high despite the outcome of the match. 

"You were so great!" Ash exclaimed, and although she had lost, he meant every word. "That was so cool, Fallon, really. Charmander and Staryu are both awesome Pokemon!" 

"They really are, aren't they?" Fallon agreed, smiling cheerfully. She chuckled sheepishly and added, "Would have been nice to get the win today, but oh well, what can you do?" 

" _You did the right thing in forfeiting the match,_ " Lucario commended her. 

"He's right," Brock agreed, coming over to join the group. "No matter what, a trainer should always strive to put their Pokemon's health and safety first. You've shown me a maturity today that most new trainers take much longer to reach. And for that, I would like to present you with this." 

He pulled a small object out of his pocket, which Ash quickly recognized as the Boulder Badge. Fallon's eyes widened and she looked between the badge and Brock, her face shining with confusion. 

"I...but why? I didn't win," she pointed out, clearly bewildered. "I thought you had to win the battle in order to get the badge." 

"The rules say that, yes, but a gym leader can also choose to give badges to trainers whom they feel have earned them," Brock explained. "I told you earlier today that wins and losses aren't what matters in the long run. By choosing to protect Charmander by forfeiting the match rather than forcing him to continue fighting injured in a battle that he likely would have lost anyway, you demonstrated to me that you understood what I told you and took it to heart. That is what I like to see out of trainers, and that is why I'm choosing to award you with the Boulder Badge." 

For a moment, Fallon looked at the badge, a hesitant expression in her eyes. After a while, however, she shook her head firmly. 

"Thank you, Brock. I appreciate the offer, I really do. But I can't accept a badge like this," she said respectfully. "The rules state that you have to beat the gym leader in order to earn the badges. I didn't win the match today, so I shouldn't get the badge. If I accept a handout, it's just going to give other people an excuse to say that I didn't earn my way into the Pokemon league fairly." 

"Are you certain?" Brock questioned. 

"I am," Fallon replied confidently. "We'll come back another time and earn the badge for real." 

He studied her for another moment, then nodded and pocketed it with a small smile. "I thought you would say that. You continue to impress me, Fallon." 

"Thanks," Fallon chuckled, looking rather sheepish. "I guess you could say it's a talent of mine." 

They all laughed at that, and Ash felt a surge of excitement rush through his veins. Tomorrow, it would be his turn to take on Brock. Every moment that Pikachu and Pidgeotto had spent honing their new moves would be put to the test, and he intended to see them pass with flying colors. 


	19. Rock-Type Showdown, Part Two

When Ash had elected against using him in the Pewter City gym, naturally, _Greninja_ had been a bit disappointed. He and Ash had done everything together for three years now, and he would have loved nothing more than to help him earn his first gym badge. But he understood why he had made the decision. At the risk of sounding arrogant, Greninja knew he was too powerful for many of the early gyms. Even if he held back, he could easily crush both Geodude and Onix in just one or two moves each. That wouldn't do anything to help Ash grow as a trainer. Besides, Pikachu and Pidgeotto had been working hard to prepare for this battle, and it wouldn't be fair to them to take this opportunity away. 

Still, it wasn't all that bad. Even if he couldn't participate in the actual battle, Greninja was more than happy to support Ash on the sidelines alongside Lucario, Fallon, and Charmander, who had come out of his Pokeball to watch the match. The fire-type was bouncing up and down in Fallon's arms, unable to control his excitement. It occurred to Greninja that this was probably one of the first battles Charmander had ever gotten to witness. 

" _Looking forward to the match?_ " he asked, grinning down at the little orange lizard. 

" _You bet! I've never gotten to see a gym battle before! This is going to be so awesome!_ " Charmander replied eagerly. 

" _They are quite fascinating, I must admit,_ " Lucario agreed. " _Although it is still quite jarring to see Pokemon battle by following a human's commands. I'm tempted to let Ash catch me officially just so I can see what it's like for myself._ " 

Fallon blinked. "Er, no offense or anything, but how have you never seen a trainer battle before? I mean, even if you were a wild Pokemon before meeting Ash, you must at least have seen one or two, right?" 

" _Well, you do tend to miss a lot being trapped inside a jewel for over seven hundred years,_ " the Aura Pokemon remarked as casually as if they were merely discussing what to have for lunch. 

She stared at Lucario, looking utterly bemused. "Um...you're not serious about that, right?" 

" _Oh no, that story is one hundred percent true,_ " Lucario assured her, looking extremely pleased with himself. 

"Oh." Fallon didn't appear to know what to say to that. "That's, uh...really...nice?" 

" _I'm not sure if nice is the right word, but it was awfully refreshing waking up after such a long nap,_ " Lucario replied. 

Greninja rolled his eyes. " _Lucario, stop trying to shock everyone like that._ " 

" _Well, I had to have some fun,_ " the jackal huffed. To Fallon, he added, " _I'll tell you the full story later, but for now, let's focus on watching Ash's battle._ " 

"I'll be looking forward to hearing it," she answered. It was easy to tell that she didn't really believe Lucario but was too polite to say anything. 

They turned their attention back to the battlefield, where Ash and Brock had already taken their places on their respective ends of the gym. Forrest was once again acting as the referee while the rest of Brock's siblings had taken their seat up in the top row again. Greninja couldn't imagine having so many younger siblings; all the noise would drive him mad after a week. And now that he thought about it, why _were_ all of Brock's younger siblings at the gym anyway? They were clearly still small; shouldn't their parents have been watching them? 

"The gym battle between the gym leader, Brock, and the challenger, Ash Ketchum, will now begin," Forrest announced. "Each trainer will be allowed the use of two Pokemon. The match will end when either side's Pokemon are unable to continue. In addition, only the challenger is allowed to substitute Pokemon." 

" _I wonder which one Ash will choose first,_ " Lucario mused. " _Pikachu or Pidgeotto..._ " 

His question was answered a split second later as Ash turned to Pikachu and asked with a grin, "So, you ready to go, buddy?" 

" _You bet I am!_ " Pikachu replied, jumping down off of the boy's shoulder, his cheeks sparking. 

"I must say, Ash, you're an unusual challenger. Not many trainers would bring an electric-type to my gym," Brock remarked from the other side of the field. 

Next to Greninja, Lucario furrowed his brow, looking a little ticked off. " _Yes, but any Pokemon could beat a rock-type gym with the right sort of training. And it's not as if Geodude and Onix are particularly difficult opponents._ " 

" _Don't worry about him, that's just a tactic gym leaders use to try to get under their challengers' skin,_ " Greninja assured the Aura Pokemon, having seen it used a few times during his life. " _They want to see if you can keep a cool head, so they'll say or do things to intentionally try to upset you and cause you to lose your focus._ " 

Fortunately, Ash didn't appear to be bothered by the comment. "Maybe, but if there's any electric-type in the world that can pull off a win here, it's going to be Pikachu." 

"Well, I like your confidence, Ash," Brock chuckled. "In that case, I'll not keep you waiting any longer. Geodude, let's go!" 

He pulled a Pokeball off his belt, releasing the small rock-type from inside. Greninja held his breath, watching as Pikachu and Geodude stared each other down. Technically, Geodude had the advantage purely because of typing matchups, but after watching Fallon's battle the previous day, Greninja wasn't too impressed with his strength. Still, Brock was a gym leader for a reason, so there had to be more to Geodude than met the eye. 

"We'll start things off today. Geodude, use Rock Throw!" Brock commanded. 

"Reflect it back with Iron Tail!" Ash countered. 

Greninja watched as Geodude hurled about three or four medium-sized rocks in Pikachu's direction. As they hurled toward him, the electric mouse's tail glowed silver as he swung it back and forth, sending the rocks flying back toward the Rock Pokemon. Most of the rebounded rocks bounced off the gym walls, but one of them struck Geodude directly in the face. 

" _Yay!_ " Charmander cheered, bouncing up and down on Fallon's lap. 

" _That was a good move from Ash,_ " Greninja remarked, feeling a surge of pride for his best friend. " _Those rocks would have hurt Pikachu more than they hurt Geodude, so it's good that he found a way to dodge the attack while also dealing a bit of damage himself._ " 

"That was amazing, I never would have thought to do that," Fallon breathed, her eyes wide. 

Of course, being a dual rock and ground-type, the reflected Rock Blast hadn't done much damage to Geodude. Still, even a little bit of damage was better than none at all. Right now, Ash stood in the lead, but for how long that stayed the case remained to be seen. 

"Hidden Power!" the messy-haired trainer ordered quickly, evidently not wanting to give Geodude too much time to recover. 

"Counter it with another Rock Throw, Geodude!" Brock shouted. 

Pikachu spun around in the air, firing off several oddly-colored orbs toward Geodude. At the same time, the Rock Pokemon charged up another Rock Throw, hurling the stones back at the electric mouse. Both attacks collided in the middle of the battlefield, kicking up a cloud of dust that sent Greninja and the others in the front row into a coughing fit. Brock's siblings, being as high up as they were, didn't appear to be feeling anything. 

" _N-nice one, Ash and Pikachu,_ " Lucario coughed. 

"I can't see anything down there. How are they supposed to continue the battle?" Fallon asked, her eyes squinting as she tried to see through the cloud of dust. 

" _Oh, don't worry. They'll be just fine,_ " Greninja replied, grinning to himself. 

Finally, some of Ash's training with Lucario was about to be put to the test in a real battle. 

"Geodude, let's finish this off with Tackle!" Brock ordered. 

Thanks to his sharpened senses, although he still couldn't see him, Greninja was able to hear Geodude flying like a bullet toward Pikachu. With bated breath, he watched as Ash stood a few paces behind Pikachu, a grin on his face. 

"Coming up on your left, Pikachu! Dodge and use Hidden Power!" he called out. 

What happened next could only be described as something out of a movie. As Geodude hurtled closer toward Pikachu, the sound of paws leaping off the ground could be heard, followed by a small explosion. When everything had settled down and the dust had finally cleared, the rock-type was lying on the battlefield, unconscious. Pikachu stood over his fallen opponent triumphantly as Forrest went over to check on Geodude. 

"Geodude is unable to battle! Pikachu wins!" the younger boy announced. "Gym leader Brock, please send out your next Pokemon." 

"Thanks, Geodude. Return and take a good rest," Brock said gratefully, recalling his fallen Pokemon. 

"Yes!" Fallon cheered, punching the air triumphantly. 

" _Just one more to go,_ " Greninja told the group, feeling his heart start to beat nervously. 

One more battle left, one more Pokemon to defeat, and Ash would win his first gym badge. All he had to do now was beat Onix. The battle was in his hands. 

"Onix, you're up next!" Brock called out, releasing the Rock Snake Pokemon from inside his Pokeball. 

The gigantic snake-like Pokemon appeared on the battlefield with a mighty roar that shook the stadium. Ash narrowed his eyes as he looked between Onix and Pikachu for a few moments, apparently having an internal debate about something. What it was, Greninja had no idea, although he did notice that Pikachu was panting slightly. Although he hadn't taken any direct damage from Geodude, he had still used up a fair amount of energy during the battle. Allowing him to continue to battle could prove to be disastrous. 

Fortunately, Ash seemed to come to the same conclusion. "Pikachu, come back for now! You were awesome, now take a break," the boy called out. 

" _No problem, Ash. Thanks for the battle,_ " Pikachu agreed cheerfully, jumping back onto Ash's shoulder. 

Pulling out Pidgeotto's Pokeball, Ash shouted, "Pidgeotto, I choose you!" 

There was a flash of white light as the bird-like Pokemon appeared, soaring high above the battlefield. She flapped her wings, her eyes narrowing as she stared down Onix. Greninja was impressed; most Pokemon would have been shaking in terror if they found themselves face to face with a massive Pokemon such as Onix, but Pidgeotto didn't appear to be the least bit fazed. Indeed, if the glint in her eyes was anything to go by, she was looking forward to the battle even more now. 

"Alright, Pidgeotto. Let's start things off by using Quick Attack!" Ash called out. 

"Rock Slide, Onix!" Brock ordered quickly. 

Pidgeotto's body glowed white as she began speeding toward Onix as the Rock Snake Pokemon let out another roar, sending countless rocks and boulders raining down from the sky. Fortunately, she managed to dodge all of them, quickly striking Onix in the face with Quick Attack. The attack didn't do much damage, but it did cause the massive rock-type to rear his head back, shaking his head as he tried to clear it. 

"Not bad at all, Ash, but you're going to have to do better than that," the Pewter gym leader stated, a small grin on his face. "Onix, use Rock Throw!" 

"Steel Wing along the ground and then fly up as fast as you can!" Ash countered. 

_Alright, so he must be trying to...er, never mind, what the hell?_

Greninja exchanged a glance with Lucario, who looked just as puzzled as he felt. What on earth could Ash be planning now? 

"What's that all about?" Fallon asked, frowning. 

" _I don't know,_ " Lucario admitted. " _He must have a strategy, but..._ " 

" _Who cares? This is so awesome!_ " Charmander cheered. " _Go Ash and Pidgeotto, go!_ " 

At that moment, Pidgeotto's wings glowed silver as she went into a nosedive, heading straight for the gym floor. And at that moment, Greninja realized what Ash had been planning. 

As Pidgeotto leveled herself out, her wings dragged across the sandy floor, kicking up a trail of dust behind her as she flew toward Onix, nimbly dodging his Rock Throw attack. Once she was only a few feet away from the Rock Snake Pokemon, she suddenly shot upward, kicking up a cloud of dust behind her. Unable to react in time, Onix let out a cry of pain as he found his eyes filled with sand and dirt. 

" _Yes!_ " Greninja cheered, punching the air. 

"Brilliant!" Fallon exclaimed. 

"Onix, just stay calm!" Brock called out worriedly as the massive rock-type shook his head from side to side, still roaring in pain and rage. "Try to sense where Pidgeotto is by listening for the movement of her wings!" 

But Onix was in far too much distress to do anything except thrash about wildly, much less try to find Pidgeotto. He continued to shake his head back and forth, trying in vain to clear his eyes. 

" _It's over for them now,_ " Lucario stated with a grin, though his eyes betrayed his concern for the rock-type. 

"Finish it off with Steel Wing!" Ash ordered. 

Once again, Pidgeotto's wings glowed silver as she sped toward Onix, who was still writhing in agony. Before he even had time to sense her, she struck him hard across the chest with Steel Wing. The rock-type let out one final roar of pain before crashing to the ground, sending a shockwave across the gym. 

"Onix is unable to battle! Pidgeotto wins!" Forrest declared. "Which means the victory goes to Ash, the challenger!" 

"You did it, Pidgeotto!" Ash cheered, his eyes lighting up with the childlike delight that always melted Greninja's heart. 

"They did it, they won!" Fallon exclaimed excitedly as Charmander did a very odd-looking victory dance. 

Greninja and Lucario, for their parts, leaped over the railing and down onto the battlefield, racing over to the messy-haired boy. The frog Pokemon hugged his trainer tightly while Lucario high-fived Pikachu and Pidgeotto before ruffling Ash's hair fondly. As Ash attempted to break away from the Aura Pokemon, laughing in protest, Brock approached the group from the other side of the field. 

"Well done, Ash," the teenager stated, a smile on his face. "That was one of the best battles I've had in a long time. As proof of your victory at the Pewter City gym, please accept this Boulder Badge." 

Ash accepted the badge, beaming with delight, before his eyes suddenly widened. "Oh, wait! I almost forgot!" 

Puzzled, Greninja watched as Ash turned around, racing back toward his bag. He dug around for a few moments before removing a small vial triumphantly and running back over to the group. 

"Here you go! You can have these eye drops for Onix!" he announced, smiling brightly as he held out the bottle. 

Brock looked startled for a moment before smiling as well, accepting the gift. "Thank you very much, Ash. This should have Onix feeling better in no time." 

Ash blushed slightly, laughing a bit as he turned back to Greninja and Lucario. "So, where should we head off to next? Cerulean City is supposed to be pretty great; maybe we could try there?" 

" _Fine by me,_ " Lucario agreed. 

" _I don't have a problem with it,_ " Greninja replied amicably. 

"What about you, Fallon?" Ash asked, turning to the ginger-haired girl. "Are you coming with us too?" 

At that, Fallon's expression fell slightly. "Er, I think I should actually meet up with Damian again," she admitted, though her expression betrayed just how much she did not want to do this. "My parents were pretty adamant about us traveling together, and I don't want to get on their bad side. But I'll be sure to meet up with you all again another time, though." 

"Oh." Ash's face fell, but he quickly plastered a bright smile on his face again. "In that case, let's make a promise to keep working hard toward our goals until we see each other again! Right?" 

"Right," she agreed, some of the misery leaving her eyes. 

They shook hands before Fallon turned around, walking toward the exit. Greninja watched her go, feeling a pang of worry in his chest. He knew, of course, that the decision to abide by her parents' wishes was ultimately up to her-but he couldn't help wondering if they should have fought harder to convince her to stay. 


	20. Regrets

It only took about two minutes and thirty-five seconds for Fallon to regret her decision to return to traveling with her brother (not that she was counting or anything). Ever since learning that she had chosen to forfeit her match against Brock, Damian had been talking her ears off nonstop, telling her how she had wasted his time by choosing to fight in a battle that she should have known from the start was a lost cause. The fact that he hadn't actually been _present_ at her match and therefore hadn't had any of his time wasted seemed lost on him. 

"I told you, Fallon. I told you all along that Charmander couldn't pull it off," he snapped for what felt like the millionth time in the past fifteen minutes alone. "But did you listen? No, of course not. You insisted that you knew better. You insisted that he was strong enough. And look where that got us! We wasted an entire day because of you!" 

"I don't suppose you would mind telling me how I wasted _your_ day?" Fallon asked coldly. "You weren't even at my battle! You were probably off catching whatever Pokemon you could find. If anything, you should be thanking me! At least you didn't have to see my face for an entire day, right? Just like you always talk about." 

"We could have been on our way to the next city a lot earlier if you hadn't decided to have a gym battle," Damian snarled. "Why can't you do anything right, Fallon? Honestly! Sometimes I think we would all have been a lot better off if Mom had just dumped you in the river when you were born or left you out in the forest for the Pidgey and Beedrill to pick at!" 

She clenched her teeth, her fists shaking as she resisted the urge to punch her brother in the face. "Funny, I could say the same thing about you," she spat. 

Damian made a very strange gesture, as though he had been about to strike her but then immediately changed his mind and lowered his arm to his side again. "Just follow me and don't speak unless I speak to you first," he growled. 

Barely suppressing her anger, Fallon rolled her eyes and trudged after her brother. The few hours of happiness she'd had during the day she had spent with Ash and his Pokemon seemed so long ago now, leaving nothing but misery in its wake. For one single day, one single, incredible day, she had been able to experience true friendship. But now she was back with her brother once more, and she didn't know how long it would be until she saw Ash and his Pokemon again. 

If Damian were the only person she had to think about, she would have abandoned him a long time ago. But she still had her parents to worry about, and as much as she disliked her brother, Fallon knew she couldn't just up and leave them. _They_ at least had always treated her well and done their best to keep Damian's bullying at bay, even if they hadn't always been the most successful. Then again, _nobody_ was successful at keeping Damian under control. He had always done whatever he wanted, regardless of whatever consequences were pushed upon him. Her parents would be heartbroken if she left her family, and that was the last thing Fallon wanted on her conscience. 

"By the way, Mom and Dad said they wanted to talk to you," Damian announced abruptly, not even turning around to face her. 

"Oh. Did they say what it was about?" Fallon dared to ask. 

"No, they didn't," he snapped. "Don't you think I would have told you if they did? Honestly, Fallon, you can be so stupid sometimes." 

She bristled immediately. "It was just a question!" 

"And it was a stupid one," he shot back. 

"How? All I asked was what Mom and Dad wanted to talk to me about! How was I supposed to know they hadn't told you?" Fallon asked indignantly. 

"Well, maybe you would have known if you had stayed with me instead of running off with that idiot boy and those freaky Pokemon of his," Damian snarled. "Do you even care about your family, Fallon? Because all you ever talk about is how much you hate being around me." 

" _Excuse_ me?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "First of all, Ash is not an idiot and his Pokemon are _not_ freaky! Second of all, who are you to accuse me of not caring about my family? Did you forget that _you_ were the one who told me that you didn't want to see me?" 

"You just met a talking Lucario and you don't think that's freaky?" Damian asked scathingly, conveniently ignoring her second question. 

"How is it freaky? He was just using Telepathy," Fallon retorted. "Legendaries and psychic-types can do the same and you don't seem to find anything freaky about that." 

"That's different! They're supposed to be able to use Telepathy," he snapped. "Lucario isn't meant to be able to use it. He's not a psychic-type and he's not a legendary either." 

"Just because you haven't met any non-psychic Pokemon who can use Telepathy doesn't mean it's never happened before," she reasoned. "And why does it matter so much to you anyway? Who _cares_ if Lucario can speak human tongue?" 

"It's not normal," Damian insisted. 

"So?" 

Apparently realizing that he wasn't going to convince her that there was something wrong with Lucario being able to use Telepathy, her brother abruptly changed tactics. "Fine, then, but what about that Ash kid? Doesn't it seem strange that he has two powerful Pokemon with him? He can't have been a trainer for very long, so how do you suppose he got them?" 

"It's really none of your business," she retorted coolly. Admittedly, she had been wondering the same thing, but she wasn't about to give Damian the satisfaction of hearing her admit to that. "Nobody else has any problem with Ash having Greninja and Lucario, so you shouldn't either. You're just jealous because you know _you'll_ never have Pokemon half as good as they are." 

"Jealous? Me?" Damian spluttered indignantly. "Are you out of your mind? There's no way I'd be jealous of a punk like him! He probably stole those Pokemon anyway!" 

Fallon rolled her eyes. "Look, Damian, you're my brother and I love you and all-" 

"No, you don't," he interrupted, scoffing. 

"Fine, you're right," Fallon acknowledged. "But that's beside the point. For someone who isn't jealous of Ash, you're sure doing a lot of whining about him." 

He sneered at her. "Of course, I should have expected that you would take _his_ side. And you wonder why I say you don't care about your family." 

"Believe what you like," she snapped. 

Not that she would ever say so out loud, but part of Fallon understood why Damian was so put off by Ash and his Pokemon. It _was_ unusual for a new trainer to have two powerhouse Pokemon at his disposal, and it was unusual for a Pokemon such as Lucario to be able to use Telepathy. Under any other circumstances, she probably would have been just as surprised. But what Fallon found the most unusual about Ash, Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu wasn't the fact that Ash had two extremely powerful Pokemon that most elite trainers would give their left arm to have on their team or the fact that Lucario was capable of speaking human language. Rather, it was the fact that she had been able to hold an entire conversation with them–multiple, as a matter of fact–without getting shouted at, belittled, or shoved around. 

Charmander had been the happiest she had seen him in quite a while as well. Her little fire-type was always on edge around Damian, not that she could blame him. But despite only knowing Ash and his Pokemon for a few hours, Charmander had shown no hesitation in befriending them. And Ash, unlike Damian, had been nothing but supportive and encouraging toward Charmander, telling him that he would be rooting for him to beat Brock next time. 

But now they were back with Damian again, which meant Charmander would once again have to be on his guard. Fallon hadn't forgotten about her brother using Vaporeon to attack the little lizard Pokemon. The mere thought of it still filled her with rage, and she quickly tried to quash it down before she did something she regretted. Really, Damian was lucky that Charmander hadn't been seriously injured. If he had been, she wouldn't have let him get away with all of his limbs intact. 

What now, though? Now that they were traveling together again, how long would it be until Damian pulled something similar? And if or when he did, how far would he go to ensure that, next time, his plan didn't fail? 

Fallon shook her head, trying to toss the increasingly dark thoughts away. No, she was being ridiculous. There was no way he would take things that far. He had probably just gotten carried away the first time. Damian was many things-arrogant, a bully, and embarrassingly jealous, to name a few. But an attempted murderer? No, that was much too far even for him. 

Right?


	21. Over the Mountains

It had only been a handful of hours since they had left Pewter City, and already Ash was severely regretting his decision to traverse the mountains. Lucario certainly hadn't been joking when he said the climb would be useful training. His body hadn't ached this much since the afternoon he had spent racing Greninja in the forest and combined with the almost unbearably thin air, it made for a truly torturous experience. Every step made his legs feel as though they were made of lead and his lungs felt ready to burst. Still, Ash had never been one to complain about a bit of rough training, so he pushed onward, ignoring his body as it practically screamed for him to stop. 

" _Ash, wait,_ " Lucario called out, worry tinting his voice. " _Ash, you need to slow down and take a break. You're going to collapse at the rate you're going._ " 

"I'm okay," Ash panted, still struggling up the mountain. 

" _Ash, no. You need to slow down,_ " Greninja insisted. " _You've been walking nonstop for the past three hours. You can't keep going like this. It's not healthy._ " 

"It's fine, really. I'm not even that tired," he lied. "What's the big deal anyway? I've walked a long time without stopping before." 

" _Yes, but walking through the forest is a lot different from climbing up a mountain,_ " the Aura Pokemon pointed out. 

" _At least take a break for five minutes. After that, you can keep going again,_ " Pikachu implored him. 

Ash was about to respond, but at that moment, his foot caught on a loose rock, causing him to fall forward. Fortunately, with the incline as steep as it was, it was only a quick fall forward and he managed to catch himself just in time. Unfortunately, when he tried to get back to his feet again, he found that he lacked his usual strength in his legs and couldn't quite manage it. He managed to push himself onto his knees, but that was as far as his exhausted body would allow him to go. 

Eventually, he gave up and sighed. "Alright, so maybe I am a little tired." 

Greninja shook his head. " _Here, get onto my back. I can carry you the rest of the way._ " 

"I don't need to be carried," Ash protested, shaking his head. "I'll be able to walk on my own in a few minutes. Besides, I'm probably too heavy for you to lift me anyway." 

" _With all the calories you burn doing all those exercises Lucario puts you through, I very much doubt that,_ " the Ninja Pokemon retorted. 

"But you've been walking a long time too. I don't want you to have to get too tired carrying me around," he argued back. 

" _It's alright, Ash. We're Pokemon; we're meant to be able to handle traveling like this,_ " Lucario spoke up gently, hoisting him onto Greninja's back despite Ash's protests. " _Don't worry. If Greninja starts getting tired before we reach the other side of the mountains, I'll take over from there._ " 

"Or I could just walk myself," Ash objected, although the look on Lucario's face told him that wasn't going to be an option. 

With a sigh, he resigned himself to his fate. As much as he loved his friends, Ash often wondered what he had done to get stuck with the most overprotective Pokemon in the world as his companions. They seemed to find every excuse possible to fuss over him, refusing to let him take on any sort of moderately dangerous task. The number of ground rules Lucario had laid out for his safety made Ash's head spin. Sometimes, he suspected that his mother had put him up to it. 

Still, it wasn't all that bad. Despite their overprotectiveness, Ash couldn't have asked for better friends (and, in Lucario's case, a better mentor). For as long as he could remember, Ash had always gotten along better with Pokemon than other kids, and his friendships with Greninja, Lucario, Pikachu, and Pidgeotto seemed to emphasize that. He even had to admit that there was something rather nice about being carried around on Greninja's back, not that he would ever admit it out loud. 

"How long until we reach the bottom of the mountain?" he asked. 

" _Probably another hour or so, why?_ " Lucario inquired. 

"When we get down there, let's settle for a bit and get something to eat for lunch," Ash suggested. "None of you have eaten since breakfast, right?" 

" _Neither have you,_ " Greninja pointed out. " _But sure, a lunch break sounds nice._ " 

Ash just shrugged, deciding it wouldn't be prudent to mention the fact that he wasn't feeling particularly hungry. The day's events so far were starting to catch up to him, and all he wanted to do was lie down for a quick nap. He let out a small, quickly stifled yawn but unfortunately wasn't fast enough to escape Lucario's notice. 

" _It's alright, Ash, go to sleep. You've had quite the day already. We'll wake you up when we get down the mountain,_ " the jackal said softly. 

For once, Ash didn't protest. Instead, he simply closed his eyes and rested his head against Greninja's shoulder. As he felt himself drifting off to sleep, the last sensation he had was of Lucario's voice murmuring softly beside him.

* * *

When Ash finally came around again, the first thing he noticed was that it was oddly dark out. At first, he wondered whether they were in some sort of cave until he realized that the ground was much too soft. As his eyes adjusted to what little light there was, he realized that they were in the middle of a forest. Confused, he looked around, eventually spotting the moon shining high above the trees. 

_What the heck?!_

" _Good evening there, sleepyhead,_ " came an amused-sounding voice from behind him. Spinning around, Ash saw Lucario and Greninja leaning up against a tree, watching him with cheerful yet tender expressions on their faces. 

"Wha...why is it so late? How long have I been out?" Ash asked, still trying to make sense of his surroundings. Then a sudden realization hit him. "Wait! We were supposed to stop for lunch earlier! You guys still need to eat! Why didn't one of you wake me up sooner?" 

" _Relax, Ash. Greninja and I took care of feeding everyone today. Pikachu and Pidgeotto went to bed about an hour ago,_ " Lucario informed him soothingly. 

"I still should have been there," he insisted stubbornly. "One of you should have woken me up." 

" _We did. Or at least we tried. But you were completely out of it,_ " Greninja informed him. " _In the end, we decided it would be best to just let you sleep. Besides, you needed to rest, Ash. Anyone could have seen that._ " 

"But I wasted the entire day!" 

" _No, you didn't,_ " Lucario said gently, walking over and placing a paw on the boy's shoulder. " _You won your first gym badge and you climbed a mountain for three hours. That's not a waste of a day._ " 

Ash wasn't sure whether he believed that or not. True, it wasn't as though he hadn't done _anything_ all day, but he had still wasted several hours sleeping when he could have been training his aura or devising a battle strategy for the next gym. More importantly, it was his responsibility to take care of his Pokemon. He should have been there to feed and train with them. Of course, Ash trusted Lucario and Greninja to handle things, but it was the principle of the matter. 

" _Now that you're awake though, we do need to have a talk about you overworking yourself like that,_ " the jackal continued, a stern note entering his voice. " _Ash, it's admirable that you want to work so hard, it truly is. But there is such a thing as doing too much, you know._ " 

"But I didn't even do that much today," Ash protested. 

" _Perhaps not today alone, but you've been pushing quite the busy schedule for a while now,_ " Greninja spoke up. 

"That's not even-" 

" _Tell me, Ash, what do you usually do on a daily basis?_ " the frog Pokemon interrupted. 

He blinked. "Er, well...I usually wake up around dawn with Lucario to do my meditation. Then I'll feed all of you breakfast and have something to eat myself. After that, I'll hold a quick training session. And then I'll pack up my belongings and we'll keep traveling for an hour or so, and Lucario will train me on using my aura to sense the other Pokemon in the area. When we find another spot to settle down, we'll have lunch and I'll either hold another training session or Lucario has me do some sort of exercise to work on my speed, strength, or endurance. Once we're done with that, we'll keep traveling. And then...oh...I guess I do kind of have a busy day..." 

" _Right,_ " Greninja agreed. " _And Lucario's right, it's admirable that you want to work so hard. But we don't want you pushing yourself to the brink of collapse again. It's important to take breaks every once in a while._ " 

"But if I take too many breaks, I could fall behind," he objected. 

" _Is that what this is about? Are you worried you're not progressing fast enough as an Aura Guardian?_ " Lucario inquired. 

Ash hesitated. "Well, not exactly, but..." 

He fumbled around for a moment, trying to figure out how to explain himself. No, he didn't think his progress had been too slow, not that he had too many options to use as a standard to compare himself against. But Ash knew he still had a long way to go, and more importantly, he had never liked sitting around when there was still more work to be done, more training sessions to be had. For every hour he spent lounging around, it was just another reminder of everything he could have accomplished during that time if he had simply chosen to be...what was the word again? Oh, right, proactive. 

" _Ash, you've been a wonderful student and I couldn't have asked for a better one,_ " the Aura Pokemon said gently. " _But you're not going to do yourself any favors if you keep pushing yourself the way you have. I want you to become an Aura Guardian just as much as you do, but it's more important to me that you take care of yourself. And that means taking care of your basic needs, not just not throwing yourself into life-threatening situations._ " 

" _And that goes for me as well,_ " Greninja told him, placing a webbed paw on Ash's knee. " _You're my best friend, Ash._ _I'd rather spend an entire day doing nothing if it means you won't make yourself sick._ " 

"I'm not sick, though," Ash pointed out. 

" _Perhaps not yet, but you will be if you continue going the way you have,_ " the Ninja Pokemon replied. 

Ash opened his mouth to reply, only for another yawn to overtake him. A wave of tiredness washed over him, and he felt a twinge of surprise. Surely he shouldn't be _this_ tired; he had just woken up from napping nearly all day! Maybe Lucario and Greninja were right about him overworking himself. 

" _Sleep now, Ash. And tomorrow, you'll be taking the day off. No waking up at dawn, no having races with Greninja, none of it. You'll have the entire day to relax,_ " Lucario told him. " _Don't worry about training. We'll make sure that everyone gets some battle practice in._ " 

Too tired to argue, Ash simply nodded. "Okay..." 

For the second time that day, he closed his eyes, allowing a wave of sleep to wash over him. Just before he dozed off, he felt Greninja and Lucario settling down beside him, keeping him company as the world faded away around him and dreams that he couldn't begin to make sense of if he tried filled his mind. 


	22. A New Companion

True to their word, Lucario and Greninja ensured that Ash didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky the following day. While he slept, they took care of feeding everyone, making sure to keep quiet for his sake. Pikachu and Pidgeotto were more than a little concerned for their trainer but relaxed when Greninja assured them that he was fine and that he just needed to rest up a little. 

" _He's going to be okay, isn't he?_ " Pidgeotto asked, still looking rather worried.

" _Of course. He's just been working a little too hard lately. He'll be fine with a day of rest,_ " Lucario replied confidently. 

" _He does tend to go all out, doesn't he?_ " Pikachu observed. 

" _That he does,_ " Greninja agreed. 

Silently, Lucario turned his gaze onto the messy-haired child, still sleeping peacefully not even ten feet away. Despite the peacefulness of the forest, neither he nor Greninja was willing to stray far from Ash. With the amount of trouble the boy got himself into, it had been well-ingrained into their minds to keep a close watch on him at all times. Lucario was half-certain that if he so much as blinked, he would open his eyes again to find out that Ash had somehow made it halfway to Sinnoh. 

" _When do you think he'll wake up?_ " Pikachu asked. 

He shrugged. " _I don't know. Whenever I suppose._ " 

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Lucario thought Ash looked a bit paler than usual. He showed no sign of waking up either despite the fact that it was almost noon. But other than that, Ash didn't appear to be unwell, so he figured he was probably just letting his worry get the best of him. Besides, Ash was young and strong. It would take a lot more than a bit of overwork to knock him down. He just needed to rest a little, and soon, he would be back to his usual self. 

Still, it was concerning that Ash had pushed himself to the point of collapse in the first place. Lucario wondered if the talk he and Greninja had with the boy the previous night had done any good. While he admired a good work ethic as much as anyone, he would much rather Ash be healthy and safe instead of constantly working toward some sort of accomplishment every minute of the day. In a way, that was probably his own fault. He had spent close to three years now training Ash in using his aura, and it seemed that his own tendency to go overboard had rubbed off on the boy. With a pang of guilt, Lucario realized that he couldn't remember the last time Ash had taken a day for himself, a day where he didn't have to worry about training of any sort. 

" _Greninja?_ " he spoke up, turning to the Pokemon that had been at Ash's side ever since he was still small. " _Did Ash seem...ill or unwell in any way when you were carrying him down the mountain?_ " 

Greninja blinked. " _You mean despite being so tired that he passed out from two o'clock in the afternoon until past ten-thirty at night?_ " he asked. Lucario nodded, and the frog Pokemon frowned. " _Well, I did notice that he seemed light...but then again, Ash has always been on the smaller side, so that might not mean all that much._ " 

" _I'm not sure,_ " Lucario mused, feeling a pang of worry. " _He does burn a lot of energy during the day...has he been eating enough?_ " 

" _I think so?_ " Greninja replied, blinking. " _He's never really complained about being hungry before, so I figured he was alright._ " 

His worry increasing all the more, Lucario glanced back over at the still-sleeping Ash. At first glance, he didn't appear to be underfed in any way, so at least that was a good sign. Maybe Ash was just naturally short and thin and his diet didn't have anything to do with it. Even so, that was just one more item to add to the list of concerns about the young trainer's health. 

" _Well, we'll just have to make sure that he eats a good meal when he wakes up,_ " Pidgeotto decided. 

" _Good idea,_ " Lucario agreed, instantly feeling better. Of course, they would all pitch in to make sure that Ash took care of himself. " _And one of us should monitor him from now on to make sure that he's actually getting enough food._ " 

" _I can do that,_ " Greninja volunteered to the surprise of no one. He had helped care for Ash even before Lucario had ever met the boy. If anyone could be trusted to make sure Ash was happy and healthy, it was him. 

Suddenly, a soft rustling noise sounded from Ash's sleeping bag. Turning his head, Lucario saw that the messy-haired trainer was finally waking up. Ash yawned and rubbed his eyes as he sat up, still looking rather out of sorts. 

" _Good morning there, Ash,_ " Lucario greeted his young charge softly. " _Or, well, good afternoon I should say._ " 

"Good morning," Ash replied, yawning. 

" _How are you feeling today?_ " Greninja asked, reaching out and placing a webbed paw on the boy's forehead. " _Are you sick? Do you need us to get you anything?_ "

Ash shook his head, looking a little more awake now. "I'm alright, yeah, just a bit tired. But I don't think I'm sick, though." 

" _Are you hungry?_ " Pikachu piped up, scampering over to Ash. " _We can get you something to eat for lunch if you'd like._ " 

"That does sound good, actually. I am pretty hungry," he agreed, perking up slightly. 

_That's a good sign, right? If Ash was sick, then he probably wouldn't be hungry. So the fact that he actually wants to eat means he's probably fine,_ Lucario thought hopefully. 

Feeling a bit more at ease than a few minutes ago, he opened Ash's bag and began sifting through the contents, searching for something that could serve as a decent meal. There weren't a lot of options, so eventually, he settled upon two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and a can of orange juice. Lucario unwrapped the sandwiches and opened the can for Ash before taking it back over to the child, who looked at him with a grateful if slightly exasperated look on his face. 

"Thanks, Lucario, but I'm not dying, you know. I can open my food myself," he objected. 

" _I'm sure you can, Ash,_ " Lucario replied, gently patting the boy on the shoulder. " _Now, eat your food. And remember, you're going to take it easy today._ " 

Rolling his eyes but grinning all the same, Ash began to dig into his meal. All the while, Lucario kept a close eye on him, checking to make sure he wasn't showing any sign of illness. But he seemed to be enjoying his sandwiches just as much as he always did, and eventually, he found himself relaxing again. All things considered, Ash seemed perfectly normal. Perhaps he had gotten a little too carried away with worrying about his charge. 

As Ash was starting on his second sandwich, Lucario's aura senses caught wind of a presence lurking behind the trees. A split second later, Ash noticed it as well and turned his head in the direction it was coming from, a curious look on his face. Closing his eyes, Lucario used his aura vision to locate the presence and quickly spotted the outline of an Eevee hiding in the shadows about twenty feet away from their camp. 

Ash had realized who their new companion was as well. "Eevee? Are you there?" he called out. "You can come out now. I promise we're not going to hurt you." 

There was a brief moment of silence, and Lucario began to wonder if Eevee would run away. Then, slowly, she crept out of her hiding spot and began to inch her way toward Ash, her ears twitching nervously. Lucario noticed that she was quite a bit smaller than most of her species, so much so that he wondered if she had only hatched recently. 

" _H-hi,_ " Eevee greeted Ash shyly. " _I-I'm sorry if I was bothering you. I didn't think you could see me._ " 

"That's okay! Hi there, Eevee," Ash reassured her, smiling brightly. "My name's Ash. It's awesome to meet you." 

" _Thanks,_ " the little fox Pokemon replied, blushing, before her eyes widened. " _Wait! How did you understand what I said?_ " 

"I'm training to become an Aura Guardian," he explained cheerfully. "Lucario over there is teaching me how to use my aura so I can help protect people and Pokemon. But I won't be a real Aura Guardian for years." 

Eevee's eyes widened as she turned her attention onto Lucario. " _Really? Does that mean you're an Aura Guardian?_ " 

" _I am, yes,_ " Lucario confirmed, smiling kindly at the little Pokemon. 

" _Wow!_ " Eevee breathed, her eyes shining in amazement. " _That's so cool!_ " 

" _Well, thank you,_ " he chuckled. " _I think it's rather cool myself._ " 

"Hey, Eevee, do you want something to eat?" Ash spoke up, drawing the fox-like Pokemon's attention back onto him. He was holding out the second half of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. "You can have this if you'd like." 

She sniffed at it curiously. " _What is it?_ " 

"It's a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. My mom made it for me, and it's really good," he informed her brightly. "Go on, go ahead and have it! You'll really like it, I promise." 

" _Ash, that's supposed to be your lunch,_ " Lucario reminded him. 

However, Ash just waved him off. "It's fine, don't worry about it! Besides, I already had a whole other sandwich plus half of this one. I'll be okay." 

Lucario shook his head fondly and watched as Eevee stepped forward and took a tentative bite out of the sandwich. As she chewed, her eyes lit up and she quickly gobbled up the rest. He grinned to himself; it looked as though the peanut butter and jelly sandwich had won yet another Pokemon over. 

" _That was so good!_ " Eevee exclaimed, staring at Ash in amazement. Then she frowned. " _But I took your food. I'm sorry._ " 

"Nah, that's okay! I like sharing food," Ash assured her, still smiling happily. "A good meal is always best if you have someone to share it with, right? Besides, I've got plenty of food. It's not like I'm starving or anything like that." 

As Ash and Eevee continued talking, laughing and joking as easily as if they were old friends, Lucario suppressed a small smile as he turned his attention toward a playful debate between Greninja and Pikachu on whether pecha berries were good or not. He might not have been a psychic-type, but he didn't need to be able to see into the future to know that when they left their campsite again, they would be doing so with one more member in their ranks. 


	23. The Perks of Evolution

It only took a few minutes for Eevee to fall in love with her new life as one of Ash's Pokemon. The young trainer was one of the kindest people she had ever met (not that she had met too many of them, but even so), making sure that she and all of his Pokemon were well-fed and watered. He didn't even bother to ask for anything for himself, although Lucario and Greninja took it upon themselves to make sure he was taken care of as well. It didn't hurt either that Ash was an excellent battle strategist, at least for someone his age. 

Since it was her first day on the team, Eevee had chosen to sit back and watch as the other Pokemon trained. In her mind, it was easier to get to know her new surroundings simply by observing them. Ash had joined her as well, explaining that Lucario and Greninja had insisted on him taking an easy day-something about him overworking himself or something like that. The two of them chatted happily and got to know each other better with the raven-haired boy occasionally calling out suggestions to Greninja, Lucario, Pikachu, and Pidgeotto. 

" _So, do you guys always train like this?_ " she asked, watching as Greninja fired off several Ice Beam attacks toward Pidgeotto while Lucario guided her in dodging them. 

"Mostly, yeah. Nothing like a bit of good battle training to get you fired up and ready to go, right?" Ash answered. 

" _You're not wrong there,_ " Eevee agreed. " _Is that how you got such strong Pokemon like Greninja and Lucario already, then? By training all the time?_ " 

Ash chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, yes and no. I've actually known Greninja since I was seven, back when he was still a Froakie. That's why he's so much stronger than Pikachu and Pidgeotto-I've only had them for a couple of weeks. But they're making really good progress. As for Lucario, he's technically not really _my_ Pokemon, but he stays with me so he can teach me how to use my aura. I met him a few weeks after I met Greninja in the Kingdom of Rota-interesting story there, you'll have to ask him to tell you it later." 

" _Oh, wow._ " Eevee blinked. " _So you've been learning how to become an Aura Guardian since you were seven?_ " 

"Eight," he corrected her. "It was my birthday when I met Lucario. That's why I was in Rota in the first place-my mom planned the trip as a gift for me. I'll have been training for almost three years now soon-my eleventh birthday is in a month." 

She nodded, then asked, " _Is training to become an Aura Guardian very difficult, then?_ " 

"It can be, yeah. But it's totally worth it," Ash told her, smiling brightly. "I've learned how to do so many amazing things that I didn't even think were possible before I started. And Lucario's been an awesome friend and teacher too. Even if he's overprotective like my mom-Greninja is too, actually." 

" _And for good reason,_ " came Lucario's voice, half-exasperated, half-amused. Eevee looked up to see that the jackal had joined them and was taking a seat on Ash's other side. " _Unless you'd like me to tell Eevee here about all the times you've given both of us heart attacks?_ " 

Ash grinned cheekily back at him. "I don't know what you're talking about, Lucario. I know how to behave myself." 

Lucario rolled his eyes but smiled all the same. " _Sure, buddy. Keep telling yourself that._ " 

Eevee laughed at the scene taking place before her. Somehow, she could sense that this was something that occurred on a regular basis. It was refreshing to see a human who genuinely thought of and treated Pokemon as equals. She had heard far too many stories of trainers that had abandoned Pokemon for, supposedly, not performing well enough in battles for them. Her own mother, a Flareon, had been left in Viridian Forest after losing against the gym leader from that city. But although she had only known Ash for less than an hour, she could already tell that he would never stoop to such a level-he would be incapable of it. 

"So, Eevee, any idea what you want to evolve into?" Ash asked, turning back to her. 

" _Evolve?_ " she repeated, surprised. 

"Sure! You've got a lot of great options to choose from, you know," he told her excitedly. "You could choose Flareon, a fire-type. Or Vaporeon, a water-type. There's also Leafeon, a grass-type, and Jolteon, an electric-type. You could evolve into Espeon, a psychic-type, or Umbreon, a dark-type. Or you could choose Glaceon, an ice-type. And last but not least, there's Sylveon, a fairy-type." 

" _Wow,_ " Eevee remarked, blinking as she felt her head spin. " _That's a lot of options to choose from. I'm not even sure which one I want to go with. What if I make the wrong choice?_ " 

"That's okay! You've still got a lot of time to decide," Ash answered, smiling encouragingly. "And even if you choose not to evolve, that's totally awesome too! You're a great Pokemon no matter whether you stay an Eevee forever or not." 

" _Thanks, Ash,_ " she replied, blushing. 

"No problem," he said cheerfully. "And hey, don't worry about making the right choice. There's no such thing as choosing the wrong form to evolve into. Just do whatever makes you happy!" 

" _Really? So you wouldn't mind if I evolved into Sylveon? Even though Sylveon is...well...kind of pink and girly?_ " Eevee checked. Not that she was sure whether she wanted to evolve into Sylveon or not...but then again, she also wasn't sure that she _didn't_ want to. But she hadn't expected a boy to be alright with her potentially turning into such a feminine-looking Pokemon. 

Ash cocked his head to the side. "What's wrong with pink and girly? Pink and girly things are still just as great as anything else. Besides, I think you would make an awesome Sylveon! I've never actually seen one in real life, but I have seen pictures of them and they're really pretty and cute. And fairy is a really strong type too." 

" _I like pink too, it's just that I didn't think you would. Most of the male Pokemon I know don't,_ " she admitted. " _They act like boys aren't allowed to like girly things or something like that._ " 

"Ah," Ash scoffed, waving his hand dismissively. "That's just a bunch of garbage. Nobody says anything when a girl likes things that boys usually like, so why does anyone care when a guy likes things that girls usually like?" 

" _They are very nice,_ " Lucario spoke up, a fond smile of remembrance on his face. " _I remember when I wasn't training with Sir Aaron, one of my favorite things to do was go out with Lady Rin while she shopped for dresses. Although, I draw the line at actually trying them on myself._ " 

"Did she make you do that?" Ash asked. 

" _She did once, yes. We were searching for a birthday gift for a young girl,_ " Lucario answered. " _The girl was about the same size as me, so Lady Rin asked me to try on the dress so we could make sure it would fit properly. I'll admit it was a bit embarrassing, but it fit perfectly and the girl loved it. That made it worth it, although I don't plan on being used as a model again._ " 

"Aw. That was really nice of you," Ash complimented the jackal, smiling. 

However, Eevee was focused more on another part of Lucario's story. " _Wait. I might have misheard you, but...did you just say Lady Rin?_ " 

" _No, you heard correctly. I did indeed say Lady Rin,_ " the Aura Pokemon confirmed. 

" _But-but-_ " Eevee broke off, feeling her head spin. " _But-Lady Rin lived over seven hundred years ago! How is it possible that you knew her? And you went_ shopping _with her? And bought a birthday present for a little girl with her? How? How is it possible?_ " 

Lucario chuckled. " _Oh, yes, pardon me for not mentioning. I happen to be over seven hundred years old myself. Quite a long story there._ " 

Eevee fainted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ash: Toxic masculinity? Never heard of her.


	24. Old Tales

"You know, you take way too much enjoyment out of doing that," Ash deadpanned to Lucario. 

It had been at least a good twenty-five minutes now, and Eevee still hadn't come round again. The little fox Pokemon was still unconscious, lying on top of Ash's sleeping bag that he had given her as a temporary bed. After she had passed out, he had immediately checked her over to make sure she wasn't sick or injured. Fortunately, there didn't seem to be anything seriously wrong with her, so he figured it was Lucario's story that had shocked her a little too much. 

Lucario smiled back at him. " _Well, I have to have some fun._ " 

Greninja walked over to join them. " _Are you trying to shock everyone with your backstory again?_ " he asked, rolling his eyes.

"He's not just trying, he's succeeding too," Ash informed the Ninja Pokemon. Lucario, meanwhile, looked even more satisfied with himself. 

Greninja shook his head. " _You know, if you keep throwing around the fact that you're over seven hundred years old like it's no big deal, sooner or later someone's going to think there's something wrong with your head._ " 

"Something tells me that's more than already happened," Ash remarked. " _I'm_ pretty sure there's something wrong with his head, and I actually saw him come out of the staff." 

" _Oh, is that so?_ " Lucario growled playfully, a teasing glint in his eyes. " _Be careful who you call crazy, Ash. You might just regret it._ "

"Yeah? And who's going to make me?" he asked, sticking his tongue back out at the jackal.

In response, Lucario suddenly picked him up and slung him over his left shoulder. Ash let out a mingled shriek of laughter and protest, trying in vain to free himself from the Aura Pokemon's grasp. Lucario, however, didn't even twitch and simply continued parading Ash around as though he were a doll. The rest of his Pokemon stood by and laughed at the scene, making no move to help him. 

" _Say, Pikachu,_ " the jackal remarked casually. " _Didn't you say there was a stream somewhere north of here?_ "

"Don't you dare!" Ash said warningly-it didn't have quite the effect he was going for considering he couldn't stop laughing. 

" _Yep,_ " Pikachu confirmed, grinning. " _It's about a five-minute walk from here. The water's nice and cool too._ " 

" _Perfect. Looks like you'll be going for a swim, Ash,_ " Lucario said cheerfully, turning and beginning to walk in the direction of the stream.

"No, no, no!" Ash laughed, still struggling to free himself. "Guys, help me!" 

However, the others just grinned back at him. " _Sorry, Ash, but you're on your own there,_ " Pidgeotto informed him. 

Ash pouted. "Greninja? What about you?" 

" _What, and get taken out by Lucario too?_ " Greninja asked teasingly. " _Sorry, Ash, but even I know better than that._ " 

" _Looks like you're on your own here, kid,_ " Lucario told him, reaching over to ruffle his hair. " _Don't worry. It's a nice day for a swim, isn't it?_ "

"Noooooooo!" he half-shrieked, half-laughed. "Lucario, Lucario, _don't_! I take it back! I don't think you're crazy!" 

" _Much better,_ " the Aura Pokemon replied cheerfully, placing him back down on the ground. 

"You know, if you wanted to prove that you're still sane, that didn't exactly help," Ash told Lucario, quickly scooting away from the jackal in case he changed his mind about tossing him into the stream. Lucario, however, just growled playfully.

Suddenly, there was a groan from Ash's sleeping bag. Turning his head, he saw that Eevee was finally beginning to stir. As he walked over to check on her, she sat up, looking around the makeshift camp.

" _Oh! Hi, Ash,_ " Eevee greeted him, her eyes lighting up when she saw him. " _I just had the craziest dream! You wouldn't believe it. There was a Lucario who told me that he was seven hundred years old! And he was friends with Lady Rin! Can you believe that? What a crazy dream, huh?_ " 

"Er...that wasn't a dream, actually," Ash said slowly, shooting Lucario a look. "Lucario is over seven hundred years old and he was friends with Lady Rin...he's right here, you can ask him yourself." 

" _Huh?_ " Eevee looked around, finally spotting Lucario standing behind Ash. " _N-no way! You're real? So that dream really wasn't a dream, then?_ " 

Lucario chuckled lightly. " _I do apologize for the shock I gave you earlier. You could say that was my way of entertaining myself, but if you'd like, I'll tell you the full story._ " 

" _I-I think I'd like that,_ " she agreed, still looking rather flabbergasted.

" _Very well, then. But this will take a bit of explaining, so I ask that you do not interrupt,_ " he replied. 

" _I won't, I promise,_ " Eevee said solemnly. 

Lucario nodded, then asked, " _First of all, I trust that you're familiar with the story of Sir Aaron?_ " When she didn't answer for several moments, he prompted, " _Well? Are you?_ " 

She remained utterly silent. Finally catching on, Lucario laughed and told her, " _Alright, you can interrupt me if I've asked you a direct question. So, are you familiar with the story of Sir Aaron?_ " 

" _Yes, of course. I think almost everyone in the world must know it by now,_ " she answered quickly. 

Ash decided not to mention the fact that he _hadn't_ known the full legend when he met Lucario, given his childhood tendency to wander off, fall asleep, or zone out before a story was finished. Greninja had mentioned to Lucario that he had once accidentally called Rota "Rome", and the jackal hadn't stopped teasing him about it for two days straight. 

" _True, very true. Well, as you know, Sir Aaron was an Aura Guardian, as well as a knight who served under Lady Rin,_ " Lucario explained. " _He was also my mentor and trained me in the ways of using aura so that I, too, would one day become a true Aura Guardian. Now, in order for you to understand what happened, first I need to explain what aura is. Aura is, in a basic sense, the life force of every living creature. And Aura Guardians are special trainers or Pokemon capable of manipulating aura in order to protect others._ " 

" _How do you do that?_ " Eevee asked, evidently forgetting her promise not to interrupt. 

However, Lucario didn't seem to mind. " _There are several different ways. To start with a basic one, the move Aura Sphere is an attack that channels one's aura and forms it into a bright blue sphere. It's a move that my species have been well-known for, although Sir Aaron was able to create an Aura Sphere as well...and so can Ash, as a matter of fact. I don't know if the same holds true for other human Aura Guardians, but I imagine it would. Aura Guardians are also capable of seeing the aura of other living beings, which comes in handy during battles when visibility is limited. And the last one that I'll tell you about for now, as well as the most important one to this story, is the ability to give one's aura to another Pokemon or human in order to heal them or, in extreme cases, save their life._ "

The fox Pokemon blinked. " _So, are you saying that Sir Aaron gave his aura to the Tree of Beginning in order to save the kingdom?_ " 

" _That is correct,_ " he replied. 

" _I don't get it, though. What does that have to do with you somehow ending up seven hundred years after your time?_ " she questioned, tilting her head to the side. 

" _I'm getting to that, don't worry. As you'll know from the legend, there was a battle set to take place that would have destroyed the kingdom. I had gone out to see if there was a way to stop the fighting, but the two armies were dead set on attacking,_ " Lucario continued. " _They weren't interested in our kingdom, only in destroying each other. We just happened to be caught in the middle. When I realized there was no way to stop them from fighting, I contacted Sir Aaron, and he decided to go to the Tree of Beginning to ask Mew to help him save the kingdom-Mew resides within the Tree. Her life force is what gives the Tree strength, and in turn, the Tree is also the source of Mew's life force. If either one of them were to die, the other would soon follow-but I'm getting off-topic here. Before he left to go to the Tree of Beginning, however, Sir Aaron sealed me within his staff._ " 

" _But why?_ " Eevee asked, looking shocked. 

" _Because of how far the Tree's roots extend, it requires a substantial amount of aura. Choosing to give your aura to the Tree results in almost certain death,_ " he answered. " _Sir Aaron knew that if I went with him, I would die alongside him. He chose to spare me that fate and instead sacrificed himself in order to save the kingdom. However, because only a person with the same aura as Sir Aaron would be able to free me from the staff-and even then, only if they were close enough for me to draw enough aura from them in order to escape-I spent seven hundred years asleep in that staff._ " 

He made no mention of the fact that he had originally believed Sir Aaron to be a traitor, not that Ash had expected him to. While the loss of his friend and mentor didn't weigh on Lucario the way it had during those first few days after their adventure to the Tree of Beginning, he still didn't like to discuss it much. 

Eevee winced sympathetically. " _That must have been a shock, waking up after being asleep for so long._ " 

" _It was,_ " Lucario confirmed, wincing at the memory. " _To tell you the truth, I didn't even realize it had been so long at first. It felt as though it had only been a few days-or perhaps even just a few hours._ " 

" _I still don't understand one thing, though. You said that only a person with the same aura as Sir Aaron would be able to free you from the staff. Why does that make any difference?_ " Eevee asked curiously. 

" _That's a good question. You see, the staff isn't just any ordinary staff. It was a special one created for Sir Aaron when he became a full Aura Guardian. The jewel that rests on top, the one I was asleep in for seven centuries, is designed so that it will only ever react to his aura signature,_ " the jackal explained. 

" _I...I think I get it now,_ " she said slowly, nodding. " _So after you woke up and got out, is that when you met Ash and Greninja?_ " 

" _It was, yes, although Greninja was only a Froakie at the time,_ " Lucario replied. Shooting a small smirk at the frog Pokemon, he added, " _He was a lot smaller and cuter back then too, I still wonder where it all went._ " 

Greninja scowled at Lucario. " _I resent being called cute, even if you are talking about my pre-evolved form._ " 

" _Too bad,_ " the Aura Pokemon teased him, to which Greninja just rolled his eyes and shook his head. 

"Lucario started training me in using my aura a day after we met," Ash told Eevee, hoping to avoid a fight-even if it was only a playful one-between the two powerhouses of the group. 

" _And you've been training for...what was it again? Three years now?_ " she asked. 

"Almost three years, yes," he confirmed. 

She nodded, then asked, " _Are you going to get a staff too when you're done training? Like Sir Aaron?_ " 

Ash blinked, realizing he hadn't thought about that before. From what he understood, it was common for fully-fledged Aura Guardians to carry them, although he wasn't sure if theyÂ _hadÂ_ to or they simply chose to. If he had to carry a staff, he supposed he would, although part of him almost hoped he didn't. It seemed as though something that big would tend to get in the way a lot.

"I...I'm not sure, actually," he answered, glancing over at Lucario. "That isn't going to happen for a long time, so I didn't really think about that." 

" _We'll cross that bridge when we come to it,_ " his mentor assured him. 

As Eevee continued to question Lucario about his old life in Cameron Palace, Ash turned to look up at the sky, watching as a flock of Spearow flew overhead. The sun had passed its peak now, and although he was still a bit tired, he had to admit that taking a day of rest had done wonders for his health. And tomorrow, he would finally be able to go back to his usual routine of training, which meant he would be able to throw all of his energy into helping his Pokemon prepare for their upcoming gym battle in Cerulean City. 

Thinking about their upcoming battle made Ash remember meeting Fallon-and Damian, although he did his best to forget about _him_ -in Pewter City before _that_ particular gym battle. With a small pang, he recalled the look of reluctance on her face as she departed from their group to continue traveling with her brother again. Of course, he had faith that he would see her again-but he wondered how long it would be and if she was alright.


	25. Rivals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I think I remember the DP anime saying that Paul traveled through Kanto at one point but I don't know when it was, so for the sake of this story, let's just say that he and Ash were there at the same time.

It took another three days of traveling to reach Cerulean City. During that time, Greninja made sure to monitor Ash at every possible moment to make sure he wasn't overworking himself. Although the raven-haired trainer insisted that he was completely back to normal, that didn't stop him from worrying. After living with Ash for three years, he knew better than anyone about the boy's tendency to hide it when he was in pain or feeling ill until he quite literally _couldn't_ anymore. Greninja wouldn't have put it past Ash to pretend to be fine when he was still sick. 

As soon as they arrived at the Pokemon Center, Ash took Pikachu, Pidgeotto, and Eevee to be looked at by Nurse Joy. While they waited for their friends' checkups to be finished, Greninja decided to have a quick sparring match with Lucario. Ash stood off to the side, occasionally guiding Greninja but keeping silent for the most part, allowing the two Pokemon to work off their pent-up energy. At one point during the match, Greninja used Night Slash to repel an Aura Sphere from Lucario; while doing so, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a boy with purple hair walking up to Ash. 

"Those your Pokemon?" the boy asked. Hearing his voice was enough for Greninja to develop an instant dislike for him. His voice was hard, cold, and aloof, and although he couldn't clearly see the boy's expression, Greninja could practically feel his disdain for Ash. 

"Maybe," Ash replied shortly. Judging by his tone, Greninja could tell that he wasn't particularly impressed with the purple-haired trainer either. "What's it to you?" 

Deciding it would be in Ash's best interest to abandon his battle with Lucario for now, Greninja signaled to the Aura Pokemon to stop before walking over to join his friend. The purple-haired boy gave him a slightly appraising look for a split second before turning his attention back to Ash. 

"It's nothing to me. It just seemed odd that a newbie like you would have such powerful Pokemon, that's all," he replied coolly. 

Ash cocked his head to the side. "Aren't _you_ a new trainer too?" 

"No," the boy answered. "I've been on my journey for almost a year now. I'm Paul from Veilstone City in the Sinnoh region. What's your name?" 

"Ash Ketchum. I'm from Pallet Town here in Kanto," the raven-haired boy told him. 

"Pleasure to meet you," Paul said in a tone that suggested it was anything but. "So, Greninja and Lucario are your Pokemon, then? I have to admit, it's impressive that someone like you managed to get Pokemon as strong as they are." 

"Someone like me?" Ash repeated, and Greninja growled at the thinly veiled insult. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?" 

Paul shrugged. "Nothing. Just that I don't usually see new trainers with powerful Pokemon. I'd have expected you to have a Pidgey or something like that. Good for you, though. I really don't think anyone should bother with weak Pokemon, you know? It's a waste of time and effort when you could just as easily catch a stronger one and save yourself the extra trouble." 

_Oh, how nice. He's one of those trainers, isn't he?_ Greninja thought to himself, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Beside him, Lucario narrowed his eyes disapprovingly at the purple-haired Sinnoh native. 

Out of all the trainers he had come across, the ones who gave up on their Pokemon because they deemed them to be too weak were among the most intolerable in Greninja's mind, second only to the ones who went out of their way to hurt their Pokemon. Although, judging by what he had seen of Paul so far, he wouldn't have put it past him to do exactly that. The Sinnoh native reminded Greninja far too much of one of his old trainers, a girl named Kate, the daughter of a wealthy businessman and, quite possibly, the one he despised the most out of all the trainers he had gone through in the past. 

Kate had been fifteen years old when he met her, already extremely accomplished as a trainer, having been through the Hoenn, Johto, and Unova leagues and placed at least within the top eight in each conference. When he had first joined her team, initially, Greninja had been thrilled. Not only was it a new beginning, but it seemed as though she knew what she was doing. The Pokemon she had on her spoke highly of her as well, so he thought it would be the start of a new friendship. 

How wrong he had been. 

He hadn't even been on the team for twenty minutes when she decided to work with him in a battle training session. Which would have been all fine and good, except for the fact that she took every opportunity to berate him for one perceived misstep or another. No matter what he did, nothing seemed to be good enough for her. He was too slow, or his attacks weren't strong enough, or his defense wasn't high enough, or she thought he should have known Hydro Pump even though he had only learned Bubble a week ago. Even worse, none of his new teammates made any move to help him. Instead, they had simply stood by and watched as Kate relentlessly verbally assaulted him, tearing down every ounce of his self-esteem (never that high to begin with at the time) in the short yet somehow also impossibly long thirty-minute training session. 

Greninja had stayed on the team for another day before deciding that he couldn't take it anymore and returning to Professor Sycamore's lab. Of course, Kate hadn't bothered to look for him, not that he had expected her to. He still wondered why her Pokemon had spoken so highly of her at first but accepted that it was possible that she at least treated _them_ properly. 

And why wouldn't she? From what he knew, they were the team that had carried her to the top eight in the Hoenn league, the top four in the Johto league, and earned her second place in the Unova league. They were treated with respect because they had made themselves _worthy_ of her respect. The very thought made Greninja seethe with indignation. 

He snapped out of his reverie to hear Ash snap back at Paul, "Oh, so is that what you Sinnoh trainers do, then? Just give up on your Pokemon because you don't think they're good enough for you?" 

"It's what I do," Paul corrected him. "Right now, I've only got Grotle on my team. He's the only one who's proven to me that he has what it takes to win." 

"Huh. Interesting," Ash remarked. 

"Interesting?" Paul repeated, narrowing his eyes. "What's interesting?" 

Ash shrugged. "Well, nothing much. It's just that if _every_ Pokemon you've ever trained was too weak for you except Grotle, are you really sure it's the Pokemon that are the problem? Maybe you're just not a very good trainer." 

Paul's face flushed red as his face twisted in embarrassment and anger. Beside Greninja, Lucario covered his mouth with a paw, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter as he desperately tried to keep his amusement at Ash's verbal jibe from rising to the surface. Greninja, however, showed no such restraint and was laughing heartily, which caused Paul's face to turn even redder. 

"You're one to talk! There's no way a newbie like you could have trained up those Pokemon," he snapped, nodding to Greninja and Lucario. "I'll bet they're not even your Pokemon, huh? Admit it. I bet you stole them from someone!" 

"Actually, Greninja and Lucario have been with me for three years now," Ash retorted. 

Paul sneered at him. "Oh, I see. You're one of those spoiled brats whose dads give them everything they want. That's what happened, right? Your dad knew that you would never amount to anything as a trainer, so he gave you two powerful Pokemon. Yeah. It figures. Of course you can't do anything on your own." 

"My dad is dead, actually," the messy-haired boy replied coldly. 

"Oh, sorry," Paul said, not sounding very sorry at all. "How did he die, then?" 

"I don't know. Why don't you dig up his corpse and ask him yourself?" Ash snapped. 

The purple-haired boy's eyes flashed as he opened his mouth to respond. Fortunately, at that moment, Nurse Joy walked out with a cart containing two Pokeballs and Pikachu, who was sitting up front. As soon as she arrived, the electric mouse leaped onto Ash's shoulder as the boy picked up Eevee and Pidgeotto's Pokeballs, placing them back on his belt. Paul watched the scene silently, a thinly-veiled look of disdain on his face. 

"Bye, then," he sneered. "I'd ask you to have a battle, but it doesn't seem like you'd be worth my time." 

"Yeah, whatever, weirdo," Ash said, rolling his eyes. 

Paul scowled, then turned and strode away from the Pokemon Center. Greninja watched him go, occasionally glancing up at the sky to see if a meteor would suddenly fall from the sky and conveniently land right on top of where the Sinnoh native was standing...

Unfortunately, a few moments later, Paul disappeared from sight without so much as a pebble falling on him. 

_Damn it. Couldn't be that lucky, I guess._


	26. The Waterflower Sisters

Very early the next morning, Ash was up and ready to head to the Cerulean gym for his second gym battle. After spending the previous week training almost nonstop, he was confident that his team had what it took to pull out a win. Pikachu's electric attacks were stronger than ever, and Eevee had learned both Swift and Charm which, while they certainly weren't the strongest moves in the world, would be helpful in getting a few guaranteed hits off as well as lowering their opponents' attack. Pidgeotto had made progress as well, replacing Gust with Air Slash. 

The sun still hadn't risen yet, so Ash decided to begin his meditation exercises for the day. Settling down on the floor, he straightened his back and closed his eyes, breathing in and out slowly. As he continued to inhale and exhale, he began to feel the room fade away around him as a sense of peace washed over him. His heart, which had previously been beating rapidly against his chest in anticipation of his upcoming gym battle, slowed to a more steady, rhythmic pace. 

An hour or so into his meditation, he heard the sound of Greninja beginning to stir. Peeking one eye open, Ash saw his frog-ninja Pokemon walk over to the balcony that looked over the Pokemon Center's battlefield, staring out over the edge. Curious as to what he was thinking about, Ash abandoned his meditation and went over to join Greninja. 

"Morning," he greeted the Ninja Pokemon cheerfully. 

" _Good morning, Ash,_ " Greninja replied, smiling down at him. " _Finished with your meditation already?_ " 

Ash shrugged. "I've been at it for over an hour, I don't think I need to do much more today. Besides, we've still got our gym battle coming up and everything. I've got way too much energy to just be sitting around." 

" _Fair enough,_ " Greninja chuckled. 

"What are you doing up so early anyway?" he asked curiously. "It's only four in the morning. Even Lucario isn't up yet." 

At that, Greninja's expression dimmed slightly. " _Ah...nothing much, really. Just thinking about that kid we met yesterday._ " 

Ash grimaced at the reminder of the unfriendly Sinnoh native. It had only taken a split second for him to dislike the boy. Perhaps that was unfair of him, but there was something about Paul that had felt...off, for lack of a better term, the moment he laid eyes on him. To Ash's utter lack of surprise, Paul had then proceeded to validate his assumptions by not only callously questioning the cause of his father's death but also by advocating for abandoning one's Pokemon. 

And maybe that was just how things were done in Sinnoh-he wouldn't know, he had never been there himself. But Ash couldn't imagine ever abandoning his Pokemon for any reason, especially not for something as trivial as losing a battle every once in a while. He was the trainer, after all. It was _his_ responsibility to make sure that his Pokemon reached their full potential and were happy under his care. It wasn't their responsibility to relentlessly crush every single opponent that crossed their paths and earn him the title of Kanto's champion. 

"Yeah, he was..." Ash trailed off, not sure what word he could use to describe Paul that would be strong enough. 

" _I've known trainers like him,_ " Greninja told him. " _They don't care about their Pokemon's feelings or if they get hurt or not. All that matters to them is winning matches. And even then, even if you do manage to win all the time, it's still not good enough for them. No matter what, as soon as they find a better Pokemon, they'll throw you out as if you're nothing. Which is probably what most of us are to them anyway._ " 

"I _hate_ trainers like that. I could never imagine abandoning any of you just because you didn't win a few matches," Ash stated, putting as much disdain into that one four-letter word as he could muster. The very thought of anyone treating their Pokemon in such a way made his blood boil. 

" _I know you wouldn't. You'd never be capable of anything like that,_ " the frog Pokemon answered, smiling slightly at him.

"I'll bet Paul and Damian would be great friends, though," he remarked, allowing a sneer to enter his voice. "Assuming that either of them is even capable of making friends, of course." 

Greninja snorted with laughter, then frowned. " _Speaking of Damian, I wonder how Fallon's doing. I hope she's still alright. She didn't look too happy when she had to go back to him, did she?_ " 

"No, she didn't," Ash agreed, letting out a sigh. "Then again, who would be if they had to travel with _him_ of all people?" 

" _I wish there was more we could do to help her,_ " Greninja murmured. " _Why do you think she went back to him anyway? I know she said her parents wanted them to travel together, but..._ " 

That question had been weighing on Ash's mind as well. Of course, it was possible that Damian would rat her out to their parents if she chose to leave him, but from what he understood, she still had a good relationship with them. She had always spoken highly of them during the few times they had come up in conversation. At the very least, the thought of them doing anything to hurt her just because she didn't want to travel with her brother anymore seemed extremely unlikely. 

Then again, perhaps it was _because_ she thought so highly of her parents that she had chosen to stay with Damian. Perhaps she simply didn't want to disappoint them. Somehow, though, Ash wasn't sure if that sounded better or worse than the other option. 

If Fallon valued her parents' approval, that was one thing. Ash could empathize with that; he valued his mother's approval as well, and, although they weren't his _parents_ , his Pokemon's as well. But it was concerning that she seemed to think that not disappointing her parents mattered more than whether she was happy or not.

* * *

Two hours later, Greninja was once again sitting in the stands, watching as Ash battled Misty Waterflower for the Cerulean gym badge. Pikachu had made quick work of Misty's first Pokemon, a Starmie, knocking them out with a Thunder followed by a Quick Attack. In what Greninja assumed was the interest of fairness or perhaps just desire to keep the battle going a little longer, Ash had chosen to swap out Pikachu for Eevee in the second round against Staryu. 

She was doing well for herself too, Greninja thought as he watched Eevee gracefully dodge a Water Gun from Staryu. Her strength wasn't quite at the level of him or Lucario or even of Pikachu and Pidgeotto, but she was quick and clever. Staryu looked utterly hapless as Eevee danced and twirled around them-or at least Greninja assumed they would if they'd actually had a face. 

"Stay calm, Staryu! Use Water Gun!" Misty called out frantically. 

"Dodge and use Swift, Eevee!" Ash countered. 

Eevee rolled out of the way as Staryu fired another jet of water toward her before leaping back up to her feet, sending a flurry of stars in the Star Shape Pokemon's direction. Unable to dodge, Staryu was sent flying past Misty, slamming hard into the wall. Miraculously, they managed to get back up, but the red jewel on their center was blinking rapidly, indicating that they were close to collapsing. 

"Staryu!" Misty cried out, worry edging her voice. 

" _Eevee's doing well,_ " Lucario remarked. 

" _She is,_ " Greninja agreed, feeling a surge of pride for the newest member of their family. " _One more move should be enough to win the battle._ " 

Sure enough, at that moment, Ash ordered another Swift from Eevee. Knowing that there was no hope of dodging the attack, Misty attempted to counter by having Staryu use Protect. Unfortunately for her, Staryu barely had enough strength to remain standing, let alone use any sort of move, defensive or otherwise. Eevee's attack struck them dead on, sending them flying into the wall once more. This time, they didn't get back up. 

"Staryu is unable to battle! Eevee wins!" one of Misty's sisters-Lily, Greninja thought her name might have been-announced. "Which means the victory goes to the challenger, Ash!"

Misty sighed, but smiled as she recalled Staryu to their Pokeball. "Thanks for all your hard work, Staryu. You've earned a good rest." 

" _Yes!_ " Greninja cheered. 

"You did it, Eevee!" Ash exclaimed, his eyes lighting up with excitement. 

" _I did it! I won my first gym battle!_ " Eevee said happily. 

Ash beamed at her and knelt down, reaching over and petting her behind her ears. "You were _amazing_ today, Eevee. And you were too, Pikachu. I couldn't have asked for better from either of you." 

" _Aw. Thanks, Ash,_ " Pikachu said cheerfully. 

Eevee smiled up at Ash as well, her eyes gleaming with pride and happiness. Then, without warning, her body was enveloped in a bright silver light. As Greninja watched in awe, her body seemed to lengthen, the fur around her neck disappearing to be replaced by what appeared to be a bow. A second bow appeared on her right ear, and four feelers formed as well, two attached to her ears and the other two attached to the bow around her neck. Her ears lengthened as well before the light finally faded, revealing that Eevee-no, Sylveon now-had lost her brown fur coloring in favor of mostly white with pink and blue highlights. 

"Sylveon," Ash breathed, his eyes wide. Then his face broke into a delighted smile. "You evolved! That's so awesome!" 

" _I thought it was time,_ " Sylveon replied, looking pleased with herself. 

" _I see what Ash meant now about her species. She is very pretty,_ " Lucario remarked to Greninja, who nodded in agreement. " _Not that she wasn't already before, of course._ " 

Greninja leaped down from the stands with the Aura Pokemon following close behind as Misty and her sisters walked over to Ash, Sylveon, and Pikachu. Misty was carrying the Cascade Badge with her, but the four Waterflower sisters' attention was entirely fixated on Sylveon. Not that Ash seemed to mind; he himself still seemed too excited over Sylveon's evolution to realize that he still needed to take his badge. 

"That's, like, so awesome," Daisy exclaimed. "I've like, never seen a Sylveon in real life before!" 

"Me neither," Misty agreed. "She's so cute, Ash." 

"She is," Ash said proudly, reaching out and petting Sylveon, who crooned happily, leaning into the gentle touch. Then his eyes widened. "Oh! That reminds me..." 

Pulling out his Pokedex, he aimed it at the newly evolved fairy-type. As he pressed a button on the pocket machine, a robotic voice sounded from the speakers. 

" **Sylveon, the Intertwining Pokemon, and the evolved form of Eevee,** " the Pokedex stated. " **Sylveon is a fairy-type. Once a fight breaks out, it will unflinchingly charge at dragon Pokemon that are much larger than itself. Wrapping the ribbonlike feelers around its trainer's arms allows it to sense its trainer's feelings. This Sylveon is female and has the ability Cute Charm. Its known moves are Swift, Fairy Wind, Shadow Ball, and Charm.** " 

"Whoa. Those are some awesome moves!" Ash exclaimed. 

" _Thank you,_ " Sylveon replied, blushing. 

"I should really get you and Pikachu looked at, but as soon as we're done, let's do a bit of training and test out those new moves, yeah?" he suggested. Sylveon smiled in agreement and nodded, and he recalled her to her Pokeball. 

Greninja couldn't help feeling amused that Ash seemed to be more excited about the prospect of training with Sylveon than about the fact that he had just won his second gym battle. Indeed, the messy-haired boy hadn't once made mention of his victory. He wondered how long it would take for the realization to finally hit Ash. 

He got his answer a moment later when Ash jumped back to his feet, slinging his backpack that Lucario had brought over to him on his shoulder. "Thanks a lot for the battle, Misty! Let's meet up again sometime and have another one, yeah?" 

"Definitely," Misty agreed instantly.

Ash grinned and turned to leave, only for the young redhead to call out, "Ah, Ash, aren't you forgetting something?" 

"Huh?" Ash blinked, turning around again. "I am?" 

_I knew it,_ Greninja thought in amusement. Beside him, Lucario looked about ready to burst out laughing. 

Misty smiled and shook her head, walking over to Ash and handing him a teardrop-shaped badge. "Here. As proof of your victory here at the Cerulean gym, please accept this Cascade Badge." 

"Oh yeah," Ash chuckled sheepishly, blushing slightly. "I guess I got a little distracted over Eevee evolving. Thanks, Misty." 

"No problem, Ash," the Cerulean gym leader assured him. "Now, go out there and win the Pokemon league!" 

"We'll do our best," he promised. 

As they were turning to leave the gym, however, at that moment, the tent flap swung open to reveal the same purple-haired boy from the previous day. Greninja rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to bang his head against the wall. And the day had been going so well too...

"My name is Paul. I challenge you to a gym battle," the Sinnoh native stated, still in the same cold, disdainful voice. Catching sight of Ash, he added, "Oh, it's you again. So did your Pokemon manage to pull off the win after all?" 

Instead of responding directly, Ash casually placed his Cascade Badge inside his case before pocketing it, walking deliberately toward the exit. As he was about to pass Paul, he stopped suddenly, gave the purple-haired trainer a look that suggested he was something extremely slimy he had found on the bottom of his shoe, and said, very clearly, "Ew." 


	27. A Quick Checkup

After an intense training session with Sylveon, Ash was more than ready to hit the road again. Not that Cerulean City wasn't an incredible place, but he preferred to stay on the move rather than remaining in one city for too long. The way he saw it, the more time he spent traveling, the more opportunities he would have to explore the world. Of course, this was probably slightly flawed logic considering the world wasn't actually _going_ anywhere, but Ash's almost-eleven-year-old brain didn't care to comprehend this. 

Unfortunately, it seemed that his Pokemon-namely Greninja and Lucario-had other plans. Before Ash could bolt out the doors to the Pokemon Center, he was stopped as Greninja grabbed his arm, effectively holding him in place. He paused and turned around, waiting for the frog Pokemon to let go of him, but his grip remained as firm as ever. 

"What's the matter?" Ash asked, blinking in confusion. He had checked and double-checked to make sure he had everything on him, so he couldn't imagine why Greninja was stopping him now. "Is something wrong? I didn't forget anything, did I?" 

" _No, you didn't. But Lucario and I talked, and we thought it would be a good idea for you to talk to Nurse Joy,_ " Greninja informed him. 

"What? Why?" he asked, startled. 

" _After what happened last week, we want to make sure you're not getting sick. Lucario asked Nurse Joy to run some tests on you,_ " the frog Pokemon answered. 

"Oh. But I feel fine," Ash argued back, frowning. 

" _It's mostly just to be safe. Since we're going to be away from civilization for a while, we want to make sure that you're healthy before we set out again,_ " Lucario explained, and Ash found that he couldn't exactly argue with that logic. " _Don't worry, it shouldn't take too long._ " 

Pikachu frowned. " _I thought Nurse Joy only worked on Pokemon?_ " 

" _That's generally true, yes. But she's also qualified to treat humans,_ " Greninja answered. 

Well, it didn't look as though they were going to change their minds, so with a sigh, Ash resigned himself to his fate. While he loved them dearly, Greninja and Lucario's overprotectiveness was getting a bit out of hand. He just couldn't see why it was necessary for him to have a checkup with Nurse Joy. It wasn't as though he had actually fallen ill, right? All he had really needed was one day of rest. His energy levels were back to normal for the most part, and he was able to go through his daily routine without any issue. 

" _Hey, so what was the deal with you and that kid with the purple hair earlier?_ " Pikachu asked suddenly, snapping him out of his thoughts. " _You looked like you didn't like him much. What's that all about?_ " 

"Oh, Paul?" Ash snorted. "You're right, I don't like him." 

" _What did he do?_ " the electric mouse inquired. 

"Put it this way. If he and Damian ever met, they'd probably be best friends," he answered grimly. 

" _He's one of those trainers who believes Pokemon should be abandoned for not winning enough battles,_ " Lucario interjected, a dark note entering his voice. 

Pikachu grimaced. " _Yeah, I can see why you don't like him now._ " 

" _And that's not all he did,_ " Greninja added, growling slightly. " _The stupid, pathetic little brat also had the nerve to pester Ash about his father's death._ " 

" _He did what?!_ " Pikachu exclaimed, his eyes wide with indignation. 

"Yeah. Apparently, he thought I was one of those rich, spoiled kids whose dads give them everything they want," Ash told the electric-type, rolling his eyes. "When I told him that my dad was dead, he thought it would be cool to ask how he died." 

" _Ash had a pretty great comeback, though,_ " Greninja said, grinning over at the raven-haired trainer. 

" _Really? What was it?_ " Pikachu asked eagerly. 

Ash laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Nothing much. I just told him that if he wanted to know how my dad died, he could dig up his corpse and ask him himself." 

Pikachu nearly fell over laughing. Even Greninja and Lucario, who had been there the first time, bore identical smirks of amusement. Perhaps it wasn't the funniest comeback in the world, but it had effectively put Paul in his place, so that was more than enough reason to laugh in Ash's opinion. 

Nearly seven years had passed since his father's death, since that fateful day in the garden. Although his absence no longer pained him the way it once had, that didn't mean Ash wanted to discuss what happened with any passing stranger. He especially didn't want to discuss it with someone like Paul, who barely seemed capable of human emotion as it was. Ash very much doubted whether Paul would be able to feel anything if someone he cared about died-or, for that matter, whether he actually had someone he cared about. 

" _You were pretty young when your dad passed away, weren't you?_ " Pikachu asked. 

"Yeah. Four years old," Ash answered, letting out a sigh. "Of course, I was too young to really understand what was going on at the time. It wasn't until I was six that I even really knew what death meant. But I always knew that he was gone even though I didn't realize what it really meant to be gone _forever_." 

" _I'm sorry, Ash,_ " Greninja said softly, reaching over and placing an arm around his shoulders. 

"It's alright. I've had almost seven years to get used to it," he said with a shrug, leaning into the comforting touch all the same. 

It took another fifteen minutes of waiting before Nurse Joy was finally ready for him. As soon as his name was called, Ash followed the pink-haired nurse to a room in the back of the Pokemon Center. To his surprise, it looked exactly like the rooms he had visited during doctor visits for his yearly vaccinations. There was even a bin filled with toys and children's books, as well as a jar of lollipops for smaller children after their shots. 

"Whoa! What's all this doing here?" he exclaimed. 

"This is the room where I treat any trainers who come in sick or injured and can't get to the hospital," Nurse Joy explained, smiling kindly at him. "It's not much, but it gets the job done. Now, I'm sure you'll want to get back to traveling soon, so let's get started, shall we?" 

Ash nodded. "Will this take long?" 

"Not at all. I just need to check your temperature and your heart rate, and that should be enough for me," the pink-haired woman assured him. 

" _Don't worry, Ash. We'll still be able to get a good few hours of traveling in when this is all over,_ " Greninja said soothingly, patting him gently on the shoulder that wasn't already occupied by Pikachu. 

"Alright now, Ash. Do you mind lifting your bangs out of the way so I can take your temperature?" Nurse Joy requested. 

Ash did as he was asked, allowing her to place the thermometer just an inch or so away from his forehead. For a split second, there was nothing but silence before the thermometer suddenly let out a long, soft beeping noise, indicating that it had made a successful reading. Pulling it away from his forehead, she looked down at the display, nodding to herself and making a note on her clipboard. 

"Temperature looks good. Ninety-eight degrees," she announced. "Now, I just need to check your heartbeat." 

Fortunately, the second test only took about two minutes at most by Ash's estimation. Once he was done, Nurse Joy continued scribbling down notes on her clipboard. Out of curiosity, he tried to read it to see what they said, but her handwriting was either completely ineligible or he just didn't know how to read upside-down. 

"Well, everything looks good," Nurse Joy remarked, turning back to Ash. "I don't believe you're ill. Just make sure to keep taking care of yourself, alright?" 

"I will," Ash promised, already on his feet and bolting toward the door. "Thanks, Nurse Joy! See you again next time!" 

" _Ash, wait! Slow down! You don't want to tire yourself out too quickly!_ " Greninja called after him. " _Arceus above, how does a kid with such short legs move so quickly?_ " 

But Ash had no intention of slowing down. Instead, he put on a burst of speed, racing past several bemused trainers as he raced out of the Pokemon Center. Why would he ever slow down now when he was feeling better than ever? There were more adventures to be had, more corners of the world to be explored, and they were all right at his fingertips. All he had to do was keep going. 


	28. The Hidden Village

"Come on, everyone, hurry up! I want to get to Vermillion City for our next gym battle!" Ash called over his shoulder, racing through the forest. 

" _Ash, slow down! We still have at least two days of traveling left!_ " Lucario shouted after him. " _You're going to tire yourself out if you keep running around like that!_ " 

Rather than heeding the Aura Pokemon's advice, however, Ash simply laughed and continued on his way. It was clear that no matter what, he had no intention of slowing down whatsoever. He hadn't stopped running since they had packed up their camp that morning, which, judging by the position of the sun, had been at least two hours ago. Despite his worry over Ash's apparent lack of concern for his well-being, Greninja couldn't help being slightly impressed. Clearly, the training Lucario had put him through to strengthen his endurance was working. 

Still, he could save admiring his best friend's stamina for later. If Ash didn't slow down soon, he was going to collapse again. Putting on a burst of speed, Greninja sprinted forward, catching up to Ash just as the raven-haired boy stumbled over a fallen branch. He staggered forward and dropped down onto one knee, his shoulders heaving as he gasped for air. 

" _Are you okay?_ " Greninja asked worriedly, bending over to check on his trainer. 

"Yeah...yeah, I'm okay," Ash panted as he finally got his breathing back under control. He shook his head. "Whoa. That was something else." 

Lucario came to a halt beside Greninja, his arms folded and a look of mingled exasperation and amusement on his face. " _And_ this _is why we told you that you needed to slow down once in a while._ " 

Ash rolled his eyes. "You know I'm fine, right? I'm not about to pass out or anything. It's going to take a lot more than that to get me down." 

But when he tried to stand up again, his legs gave out almost immediately. He was only kept from falling over again by Greninja catching him around the middle. The raven-haired boy took a few more deep breaths before straightening up again, nodding gratefully to Greninja. His legs wobbled slightly, but fortunately, he managed to remain standing this time. Even so, Greninja didn't release his grip on Ash, not wanting to risk him collapsing again. 

" _Are you sure you're okay, Ash?_ " Greninja pressed him 

"Yeah. My legs do kind of feel like jelly, though," Ash admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess I did push myself a little harder than I thought." 

" _You think?_ " Pikachu snarked, though his eyes betrayed his worry for the messy-haired boy.

" _We should find a place to stop and rest for a bit,_ " Lucario decided, his eyes filled with concern. " _Just for a couple of hours until you get your strength back._ " 

It was a mark of how tired Ash must have been that he didn't argue. Instead, he simply nodded, allowing Greninja to guide him through the forest as they searched for a suitable place to rest. As they walked, Greninja could feel Ash's heart pounding against his chest and was startled by how rapidly it was beating. He knew Ash had been running hard for quite some time, but should it have been beating _this_ quickly? 

Eventually, however, it began to slow, and Greninja found himself relaxing. Perhaps he was just letting his worry get the best of him. At the end of the day, Ash was still young and strong. Running all the time might tire him out, but it wouldn't do anything more than that, right? There shouldn't have been anything to worry about. 

Suddenly, the group came to a halt as they found their path blocked by a Bulbasaur. The small grass-type growled menacingly at Ash, his vines swaying back and forth as though threatening to strike the raven-haired child. Greninja narrowed his eyes at Bulbasaur as Ash stared back, affronted and more than a little bewildered. 

" _Get out of here, human! You're not welcome here!_ " Bulbasaur snarled. 

"What? Why?" Ash asked, clearly stunned. 

" _This place is for Pokemon only! No humans are permitted beyond this point,_ " the grass-type snapped, either not realizing or not caring that Ash had been able to understand him. " _Leave at once or I willÂ_ make you _._ " 

"What do you mean? This is just some dumb forest," Ash scoffed. "I don't see any sign anywhere that says I'm not allowed to be here. Besides, we're not staying anyway. We just need to pass through so we can get to Vermillion City." 

That was the wrong thing to say. Far from being appeased, Bulbasaur's eyes flashed as he lashed out at Ash with Vine Whip. Before he could strike, however, Greninja snatched the vines out of the air, spinning the dinosaur-like Pokemon around before sending him bodily into a tree. As he lay there, stunned, Lucario's eyes flashed blue as he lifted Bulbasaur into the air with Psychic. Bulbasaur struggled as he tried to free himself, but Lucario's hold remained firm 

" _Listen and listen well, you stupid weed,_ " Greninja hissed, walking up to stand beside the Aura Pokemon. " _I don't know what your problem with humans is, but leave Ash out of it. He hasn't done anything to harm you or this forest-or any of the Pokemon living around here._ " 

" _That's what you think! Humans are all the same! Can't trust any of them!_ " Bulbasaur growled, still fighting to free himself. 

" _I think I would know better than you considering I've been with Ash this whole time,_ " Greninja snapped back. 

" _Take this as a warning. The next time you choose to attack Ash, you'll be lucky if you can walk at all afterward,_ " Lucario snarled. 

"What on _earth_ do you think you're doing?!" 

Spinning around, Greninja saw a young woman with medium-length blue hair dressed in overalls rushing toward them. Her eyes were alight with righteous anger, which immediately sent a thrill of indignation through Greninja. If she was who he thought she was, then she had a lot of explaining to do. 

"What are you doing?" the woman repeated, glaring at Ash. "Tell your Pokemon to release Bulbasaur at once!" 

Ash shrugged. "Fine, if you say so. Hey, Lucario, can you put Bulbasaur down?" 

" _Certainly,_ " Lucario replied, giving the woman a mock salute before dropping the grass-type unceremoniously onto the ground. 

"What was that for? I'll give you five seconds to explain why you attacked Bulbasaur!" the blue-haired woman snapped. 

"Really? Well, in that case, I'll giveÂ _youÂ_ five seconds to explain why your Bulbasaur tried to attack me for no reason!" Ash shot back. 

"That didn't look like no reason to me," she sneered. 

" _Is that so? Then what would you say if we told you that we were just trying to pass through this forest to get to Vermillion City when your Bulbasaur stopped us and tried to force Ash to turn back?_ " Lucario asked, his eyes flashing. At the sound of his voice, the woman's head snapped toward him. 

"Y-you can talk?" she exclaimed. 

Lucario rolled his eyes. " _Yes, I can talk. Brilliant observation. Now answer the question._ " 

She stared at him for a few more minutes before finally managing to collect herself. "Well, then you shouldn't have been trespassing. If you had just turned around, then Bulbasaur wouldn't have felt the need to attack." 

"Trespassing onÂ _what_?" Ash asked, looking as exasperated as Greninja felt. "This is just some stupid forest! It doesn't belong to anyone, and I don't see any signs anywhere saying that walking through here is a crime." 

"This place isn't just a forest. It's a village where I treat sick and injured Pokemon," the woman explained. "The reason you haven't seen any signs is that I want to avoid an overflow of trainers coming in and trying to catch the Pokemon living here." 

"Right. This is the stupidest village I've ever seen, then," the raven-haired boy snarked. "Who are you kidding? There's no village here! It's just a bunch of trees!" 

Her eyes flashed angrily. "I'm going to ask that you leave us at once." 

"Sure, sure," Ash said, rolling his eyes. "For your information, I wasn't even going to catch any Pokemon. We just needed to pass through to get to Vermillion City. Maybe you could explain that to Bulbasaur, though you'll probably have to use a lot of pictures and small words for him to be able to understand." 

With that last parting shot, he turned around, walking past Bulbasaur and continuing down the path. Greninja followed after him, eager to get away from the woman and her strange Bulbasaur. He wasn't sure if the whole "hidden village" thing was just a game she had thought up as an excuse to attack random passersby, but he wasn't about to stick around and find out. Hopefully, this experience would teach her to control her Pokemon a little better in the future. 

"What a weirdo," Ash muttered. Greninja noted happily that he was able to walk without support now. "Hidden village, yeah right. Since when does a forest count as a village? 

" _Well, she did say it was hidden,_ " Pikachu pointed out fairly. 

" _Hidden. Yeah, more like nonexistent,_ " Lucario sneered. 

"Besides, I could sense other Pokemon in the area, but none of them were sick or injured," the raven-haired boy added, and Lucario nodded in agreement. 

" _Let's keep moving for a bit longer. We don't want to risk running into that woman or Bulbasaur again,_ " the Aura Pokemon suggested. 

That was more than fine as far as Greninja was concerned. All he wanted was for the next few hours to pass in peace. It had already been a long day, and it wasn't even time for lunch yet. If he ever had to see that woman and her Bulbasaur again, it would be too soon. 

Unfortunately, luck wasn't on his side in this case. They hadn't even been walking for five minutes when Ash suddenly let out an exasperated groan, spinning around and glaring at a bush about twenty feet behind them. 

"You can come out now," he said irritably. "I know you're there, so there's no point in hiding!"Â 

Greninja glanced between his best friend and the bush, utterly bewildered. What-or rather, who-could Ash have been talking to? His confusion quickly changed to annoyance, however, when an all-too-familiar frog dinosaur stepped out. 

" _You!_ " he snarled, feeling his temper flare. " _What are you still doing here? We're leaving your pathetic little village, isn't that enough for you? Why are you still following us?_ " 

" _Melanie sent me to make sure you keep your word. Everyone knows you can't trust a trainer and their Pokemon to keep their promises,_ " Bulbasaur growled back, glaring at Ash. " _If I hadn't followed you, I'll bet you'd have turned right around and tried to catch one of the Pokemon from the village._

Ash rolled his eyes. "Again with the hidden village? There's nothing there! Why can't you find some other game to play?" 

" _Game?_ " Bulbasaur repeated, now looking highly offended. " _For your information, kid-_ " 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, I don't care," the boy interrupted. "Look, we were on our way out anyway, so you can stop following us now. Go tell Melody you did your job." 

" _Melanie,_ " the grass-type corrected him, seemingly out of habit. " _And nice try, but you're not getting away that easily. I know what you humans are like,_ Ash _. So I'll be watching your every move until I see once and for all that you're out of our way._ "

"Whatever. Come on, Greninja, Lucario, let's go. If Bulbasaur wants to follow us like an idiot, let him. It's not like he can stick around forever, right?" Ash sighed. 

It was jarring for Greninja to hear Ash speak about a Pokemon with such distaste. In all the years he had known him, he had never seen Ash treat Pokemon with anything but kindness. All of the Pokemon in Viridian Forest seemed to adore him, and he was friends with most of the Pokemon at Professor Oak's ranch. Then again, he couldn't deny that Bulbasaur had more than earned Ash's dislike. 

Bulbasaur narrowed his eyes. " _If you think-_ " 

Finally having had enough, Greninja fired an Ice Beam at the Kantonian grass-type, effectively freezing him in place. He glared furiously at Greninja, but being frozen in a block of ice was unable to retaliate. Ash, Greninja noted, looked a bit uncomfortable but did not move to defend Bulbasaur as he normally would have. Pikachu wasn't even giving the grass-type the time of day. And Lucario, always the noble and just one, simply stared down at Bulbasaur, looking utterly unimpressed. 

Well, he should have seen it coming, Greninja reasoned. If getting attacked by Lucario's Psychic wasn't enough to teach Bulbasaur a lesson the first time, perhaps being turned into a Pokemon popsicle would. Anyone who wanted to mess with Ash would have to go through them first. Besides, it wasn't as though they had _killed_ him or even seriously injured him. He would be fine as soon as Melanie found him. 

" _Come on, Ash. Let's get out of here before he thaws out,_ " he decided. 

Ash nodded, then frowned over at Bulbasaur. "Er...he's going to be okay, right?" 

" _He'll be fine. We're not far from where we met Melanie. She'll come looking for him shortly, I'm sure,_ " Lucario assured him. " _In the meantime, it's more important that we get out of here and as far away from this...hidden village...as possible._ " 

" _You don't have to ask me twice,_ " Greninja remarked. 

It was a shame, really, he thought to himself. All things considered, Bulbasaur seemed to be a tough, spirited Pokemon. Perhaps if they had met under different circumstances, they could have all been friends. 

On second thought, there was no way that was true.

* * *

Bulbasaur was fuming. 

As if trespassing on his village wasn't enough, the boy had also had the nerve to insult Melanie and allowed both Greninja and Lucario to attack him. It had taken over half an hour for Bulbasaur to thaw out of the ice, but as soon as he was free, he had immediately stormed off in the direction he had seen Ash and his Pokemon go off in. He knew that what he was doing was risky, especially given that Greninja and Lucario were clearly still angry with him, but he didn't care. One way or another, he was going to teach the human a lesson he wouldn't forget for a long time. 

" _Tch...humans. Can't trust a single one of them,_ " he muttered to himself. 

The logical part of Bulbasaur's mind told him that Ash hadn't actually _done_ anything to any of the Pokemon in the village. He had, as he had stated himself, simply been passing through. But he quickly brushed the thought aside. He knew what humans were like. In all likelihood, it had just been a ploy to get Bulbasaur to let his guard down so he could sneak around and capture one of the village's Pokemon. 

He conveniently ignored the voice in his head telling him that Ash was much too young to have thought of such an elaborate plan. 

Maybe he wasn't being entirely fair, but Bulbasaur didn't much care about that. He had seen all too many times the effects left behind by trainers who abused, neglected, or abandoned their Pokemon. They were the Pokemon he had sworn to protect inside the village, after all. While all of them recovered to some extent, many of them remained scarred for life, both in a physical and an emotional sense. If getting knocked around, frozen solid, and shouted at by a small boy was what it took to protect them, then Bulbasaur would gladly go through all of that and more in a heartbeat. 

It didn't take long to find Ash and his Pokemon again. They had set up a small camp about two miles away from the village, so by all intents and purposes, they had kept their promise about leaving. Bulbasaur hovered in the shadows, debating whether or not to turn back. 

Then he shook his head. He couldn't afford to abandon his plan now. The Pokemon at the village still needed him. They were counting on him to protect them, and he would make sure he kept his promise no matter what he had to do. 

Still, he remained still for a few more moments. His two previous encounters with the boy and his Pokemon had taught him not to go charging in wildly. The last thing he needed was to be turned into a Pokemon popsicle again. 

Luckily for him, they didn't appear to have noticed his presence yet. Bulbasaur watched silently as Ash pulled two more Pokeballs off his belt, releasing two more Pokemon from inside. The first he recognized as a Pidgeotto, but try as he might, he couldn't put a name to the second one. She shared enough physical characteristics with an Eevee that she was most likely the evolved form of one, but she wasn't any of the ones that he recognized. 

_Maybe she comes from another region?_

As he was pondering over this question, the strange-looking Pokemon walked up to Ash, crooning softly. Ash smiled down at her and reached out to pet her gently behind the ears. She leaned into his touch, a contented smile on her face. Pidgeotto did the same, and Ash reached over to pet her as well. 

Bulbasaur stared in shock. What was going on?

"Hi there, Sylveon, Pidgeotto. Had a good day so far?" Ash asked softly. 

" _It's been great! Nice and peaceful,_ " Sylveon answered. 

"That's good to know," the messy-haired trainer said, grinning. "I'll bet you're hungry now though, yeah? Don't worry, I'm about to get food ready for all of you." 

He walked back over to his bag, setting it down and pulling out several food bowls that he filled up with Pokechow and a few treats that Bulbasaur didn't recognize. Even from where he stood, however, he could still taste their heavenly aroma. The jackal-Lucario, Bulbasaur was fairly certain-didn't have a bowl of his own but chose instead to pick a few berries off a nearby bush...as well as a chocolate bar from Ash's bag. 

Ash rolled his eyes, but the smile on his face was visible for everyone to see. "Really, Lucario?" 

" _I did tell you to be better at hiding it next time, didn't I?_ " Lucario teased him, taking a bite out of the sweet. " _Mm...raspberry. Not a bad choice, though I'd go for the black cherry-flavored bar next time._ " 

"Hey, the raspberry one is my favorite. If you want to get black cherry-flavored chocolate, you can buy it yourself next time," Ash complained. 

" _With what money, exactly?_ " the jackal drawled. 

The raven-haired boy paused, then corrected himself, "Fine. Next time, you can pick out a black cherry-flavored chocolate bar and _I'll_ buy it." 

" _I'll take you up on that,_ " Lucario replied cheerfully, smirking. 

Greninja shook his head, leaning onto his side from his position next to Ash. " _I still can't believe that your biggest weakness is_ chocolate _of all things._ " 

_What's going on here?_

This wasn't how things were supposed to be. Humans were supposed to be cruel and self-centered, treating their Pokemon as if they were nothing more than tools to be used in battle. Yet here Ash was, smiling and laughing with his Pokemon as if they were friends...as if they were _equals_. Despite his complaining, he showed no real sign of anger or annoyance over Lucario stealing his chocolate bar, and he put their needs before his own. Bulbasaur noticed that all of the Pokemon were eating happily while Ash had yet to take any food for himself. 

He couldn't take it any longer. Abandoning all pretense of caution, Bulbasaur burst into the clearing, drawing everyone's attention onto himself. All at once, the laughter in their eyes disappeared to be replaced by anger and disdain. 

" _Not you again!_ " Greninja groaned, glaring down at him. " _Why can't you just leave us alone? Haven't you caused enough trouble for us today?_ " 

"It's okay, Greninja," Ash sighed. Turning to look at Bulbasaur, he added wearily, "Look, I'm sorry if we're still in the...hidden village or whatever, but we've just set up camp and we're not going to be traveling again for at least a couple of hours. I promise I'm not going to bother any of the Pokemon here, so can you please just go away? This is getting really old." 

" _That's not why I'm here,_ " Bulbasaur defended himself, ignoring the fact that it was, in fact, exactly why he was there. 

" _Then why are you here?_ " the Pikachu atop the boy's shoulder demanded. 

Instead of answering directly, Bulbasaur turned back to Ash. " _Why do you treat your Pokemon the way you do?_ " 

Ash blinked, looking utterly bewildered now. "What do you mean? There's nothing wrong with the way I treat them. Look at them. Do they look unhappy to you?" 

" _That's the point. Why do you treat them with such kindness and respect?_ " the grass-type elaborated. 

"Well, why not?" Ash looked, if possible, even more confused. "They're my friends. Aren't friends supposed to be kind to each other?" 

That was certainly a new one. In all his life, Bulbasaur had never known a human to refer to Pokemon as his _friends_. He scanned Ash's face, looking for any hint of insincerity but found none whatsoever. The boy was telling the truth; he _did_ consider his Pokemon to be his friends. 

" _But...you're a human,_ " Bulbasaur stated, his mind still refusing to comprehend the way his world had just been tilted on its axis. 

"I am," the dark-haired boy agreed. 

" _You're a human. And humans can't be trusted. Humans don't think Pokemon are their friends,_ " he insisted. 

" _Arceus above, help me._ _Here we go again,_ " Greninja muttered. 

Rather than rising to the bait, however, Ash just tilted his head to the side and frowned. "I don't get it...is Melanie not human or something, then?" 

" _What? Of course, she is! What are you talking about?_ " Bulbasaur asked, utterly bewildered. 

"If you think all humans are so bad, then why do you hang around her so much?" he pointed out. 

" _Yes, well...she's an exception,_ " Bulbasaur defended himself. " _She's proven that she can be trusted._ " 

" _How? By sending you out to attack any trainer that happens to walk through the forest?_ " Lucario deadpanned. 

"What makes you think you know everything about humans anyway? You live in the middle of a forest," Ash challenged him. 

" _Excuse me? In case you've forgotten, your Greninja and Lucario attacked me!_ " he snapped. 

"I didn't tell them to. They were only defending me. Besides, you were the one who attacked me first," the raven-haired trainer argued back. "And you were the one who refused to let things go even after we had already left." 

Bulbasaur opened his mouth to argue but paused as he realized that Ash was right. He _was_ the one who had attacked first, and while Greninja and Lucario had both attacked him, he couldn't recall Ash ever asking them to do so. And from what he had seen, the boy wasn't interested in harming any of the Pokemon in the village. True, he had been trespassing, but the village was a well-kept secret. Maybe Ash truly _hadn't_ been aware of its existence. 

" _Alright,_ " he sighed. " _You're right. I'm sorry._ " 

Ash studied him for a few moments, then smiled brightly. "It's okay! I'm sorry too for, you know, calling you and your friend stupid and everything." 

Bulbasaur dipped his head in acknowlegement, watching in slight bemusement as Ash began rummaging through his bag. After a few moments, he pulled out a tin of Pokemon treats. He shook a few out onto his palm and held them out to Bulbasaur. 

"Here you go! These are some Pokemon treats my mom taught me how to make especially for grass-types," Ash said happily. "And they're made with berries, so they can make you feel better too!" 

Slowly, Bulbasaur stepped forward, sniffing cautiously at the treats. At once, he felt as though he were floating on cloud nine as the scent of his favorite berries washed over him. Before he knew it, he had gobbled up every last treat in Ash's hand. As he swallowed the last mouthful, he smiled contentedly at the boy. 

" _That was incredible! And you said your mom taught you how to make this?_ " he asked in amazement. If humans could create something so delicious, then perhaps at least some of them weren't as bad as he had thought. 

"She did," Ash confirmed, grinning. "Glad you enjoyed it." 

Bulbasaur opened his mouth to respond when a sudden realization hit him. " _Wait a minute! How can you understand me?_ " 

At that, Ash and his Pokemon all laughed. "I was wondering when you would ask that. Lucario's teaching me how to become an Aura Guardian. I can use my aura to understand Pokemon speech now." 

Now he was impressed. Although he didn't know much about Aura Guardians, he had heard enough stories to know that they were very highly respected not only by other trainers but by Pokemon as well. The most popular story among the Pokemon back at the village was about an Aura Guardian, one by the name of Sir Aaron. If Ash was training to become one, that spoke volumes about his abilities. 

" _Wow,_ " Bulbasaur said finally. " _That's impressive. How long have you been training?_ " 

"Almost three years now," Ash told him. 

Three years...so he must have been extremely dedicated to his training, then. Bulbsaur felt his opinion of Ash increase ever so slightly. Becoming an Aura Guardian was obviously important to him if he was willing to dedicate so much time to training at such a young age. 

" _Is that your goal, then? To become an Aura Guardian?_ " he asked curiously. 

"It's one of them, yeah," Ash agreed. 

" _One of them?_ " Bulbasaur repeated. " _What are the other ones?_ " 

Ash opened his mouth to respond, then paused. "I don't know, really. Winning the Pokemon league, I guess. That would be nice since I know it would mean a lot to my Pokemon. But mostly I just want to be able to travel the world and make friends with lots of people and Pokemon." 

There he went again, shattering every belief Bulbasaur had previously held about humans into a thousand pieces. Ash certainly was a strange one, that was for sure. Yet Bulbasaur found that he didn't mind being proven wrong. It was reassuring to know that there was at least one more human in the world besides Melanie that he could trust. 

"You know, you're a great Pokemon, Bulbasaur," Ash told him, smiling sincerely. "If you weren't busy protecting your village, I'd ask you to come along with me. I'm sure we'd get along great. But I understand that you have to stay here." 

" _Yes...yes, I do..._ " Bulbasaur said slowly, his voice trailing off at the end. 

Apparently noticing his hesitation, Ash frowned. "What's wrong?"

Bulbasaur didn't answer, choosing instead to remain silent as he mulled over the messy-haired child's words in his head. What Ash had said was certainly true. He was supposed to stay to protect the village. It was his job to protect the Pokemon inside from poachers or trainers looking to cause harm. He didn't want to imagine what Melanie would think if he chose to abandon his post now.

But, on the other hand, almost all of them were fully healed, at least from a physical standpoint. And Melanie was more than capable of taking care of them on her own. None of them had any trainers, which meant they would have to get used to living in the wild at some point. He couldn't be around to protect them forever. Perhaps it would be in their best interest if he decided to move on and let them learn how to take care of themselves. 

Besides, Bulbasaur had to admit that the thought of traveling around the world sounded extremely appealing. Not that he was unhappy living in the village, but he had never gotten a chance to explore the wonders that lay beyond the forest. Now, however, it looked as though he would finally be getting his chance. 

His mind made up, he turned to Ash again. " _If it's alright, would you mind waiting a little bit longer to leave again?_ " 

"Sure, but why?" Ash asked, looking puzzled. 

" _I'd like to come with you, but before I go, there's just something I need to take care of,_ " Bulbasaur explained. 

Greninja narrowed his eyes at him. " _If this is a trick of some sort..._ " 

" _It's not. I really do just need to take care of something,_ " he insisted. 

"Well...alright, then. We can wait for you," Ash agreed finally. 

Bulbasaur dipped his head gratefully toward the boy before turning around and walking back in the direction of the hidden village. A new life full of adventures and new friendships awaited him-but he wasn't about to leave his old one without saying goodbye. 


	29. Rapid Decline

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains depictions of violence.

The first thing Fallon noticed when she woke up was that the forest was suddenly much warmer and softer than she remembered. As her eyes adjusted to the light, however, she realized that she wasn't in the forest at all, but rather inside a hospital room in the Pokemon Center. Fallon blinked, staring around herself in confusion. She didn't remember reaching the Pokemon Center last night, so how on earth had she ended up here? 

"Oh, you're awake!" 

At the sound of the voice, Fallon turned to see Nurse Joy entering her room along with Damian. She opened her mouth to respond but was cut off as her head suddenly gave an extremely painful twinge. Wincing, she rubbed her forehead, trying to rid her vision of the stars spinning before them. 

"Careful there, dear," Nurse Joy said gently, sounding worried. "You hit your head pretty hard when you passed out. You're going to be in some pain for a while." 

"What...what happened?" Fallon muttered as her vision finally-thankfully-cleared. 

"You fainted while we were on our way to Vermillion City. Nurse Joy said you were dehydrated or something," Damian told her. "I had to drag you all the way here myself." 

The veiled comment about her weight wasn't lost on her. She was about to snap back a retort when she noticed the black eye her brother was sporting. There was dried blood around his nostrils as well, and he looked surlier and meaner than ever. 

"What happened to _you_?" she asked, startled. 

"None of your business," Damian snapped back. 

Fallon narrowed her eyes but, not wanting to get into a fight with her brother in front of Nurse Joy, decided to let it go for now. Turning back to the pink-haired woman, she asked, "Is it alright if I feed my Pokemon in here? It's been a while and I'm sure they must be hungry." 

"Of course, Fallon," Nurse Joy replied kindly. 

Nodding gratefully, she slowly climbed out of bed and pulled Charmander, Staryu, and Jolteon's food bowls. Once she had filled them up with what she figured would be a decent amount of food for them, she turned to pull their Pokeballs off her belt. When she did so, however, she was shocked and horrified to find that there were only two Pokeballs. And she knew instantly which one was missing. 

"Charmander's missing!" Fallon cried out. 

"What do you mean?" Nurse Joy asked, looking alarmed. "Are you sure?" 

"Yes, I'm positive! His Pokeball is always right here, but it's gone now!" she exclaimed, pointing to a notch on her belt. 

How had this happened? She always made sure that she had all of her Pokemon with her before going anywhere. Fallon rubbed her forehead, trying to think of how Charmander's Pokeball could have gotten lost. Had it fallen off her belt when she had passed out? That seemed to be the most likely scenario...but if that were the case, surely someone would have noticed by now, right? 

"Did you know?" she demanded, whirling on Damian. "Did you know that Charmander's Pokeball was gone? What have you been doing this whole time? Why didn't you go look for him?" 

"I didn't know!" Damian defended himself. "I was a bit more concerned with getting _you_ here! Which, by the way, you still haven't thanked me for!" 

"What do you mean, you didn't know? I only have three Pokemon on me as it is! How could you not realize that I was one short?" Fallon asked furiously. "You know, Damian, sometimes you can just be the stupidest person on the planet from here to Alola!" 

Barely resisting the urge to slam her fist into his face, she stumbled back to her feet and shoved past her brother, heading straight for the door. Before she could get very far, however, she was stopped as Nurse Joy grabbed her arm gently. Fallon spun around, staring at the pink-haired woman in bewilderment and anger. Did she not realize that she had something important to take care of? 

"What are you doing? Let me go! I need to find Charmander!" she snapped. 

"You can't." Despite her rudeness, Nurse Joy's expression showed no anger or hurt, only compassion. "It's too dangerous for you to go out there right now. You're injured and there's a storm going on outside. It's going to be raining hard until at least tomorrow morning. I can't risk you getting yourself sick." 

"But what about Charmander?" Fallon asked desperately. "I can't just leave him out there! If it's really raining as hard as you say, then he could get hurt!" 

"Don't worry. As long as Charmander stays in his Pokeball, then he'll be protected from the weather," Nurse Joy said soothingly. "But if it would make you feel better, I can send someone else out there to look for him."

Fallon opened her mouth to refuse, wanting to insist that she was perfectly fine and capable of finding Charmander on her own. Then she realized that the chances of her convincing Nurse Joy to let her leave the Pokemon Center were slim to none. Reluctantly, she closed her mouth again and nodded slowly.

"Okay," she agreed quietly, feeling hollow inside.

Nurse Joy smiled sympathetically and patted her on the shoulder. As miserable and worried as she was, however, the comforting gesture did little to soothe her.

_I'm sorry, Charmander. I'm so, so sorry._

* * *

Nurse Joy had certainly been right about the severity of the rainfall. It _was_ pouring hard outside, to the point where Fallon could barely see out the window. She leaned against the armrest of the chair she had claimed for herself as she stared outside, only vaguely aware of the other patrons in the Pokemon Center's lobby. Every so often, someone would come over to offer her a drink or something to eat, but she declined each time. 

Two hours had passed since she had woken up to find Charmander's Pokeball missing, and she still had yet to see any sign of him. The more time that passed, the less optimistic she felt about ever seeing her fire-type again. Her worry, anger, and despair had settled into a hard lump in her stomach, making it impossible for her to even think about eating. Even the offer of her favorite soup wasn't enough to sway her. 

Damian was nowhere to be seen, having chosen to go out in the storm to see if he could catch any rare Pokemon. That was perfectly fine with her. Although it probably wasn't fair of her to do so, Fallon couldn't help holding him at least partially responsible for Charmander's disappearance. Even if he had been concerned about getting her to the Pokemon Center-which she highly doubted he had been-it shouldn't have taken him much to notice that she was missing a Pokeball. 

Anyway, it _had_ been mostly his fault that she had ended up in that situation in the first place. Thanks to his insistence that they kept moving until they reached Vermillion City, she hadn't had time to stop and take a drink of water. It was no wonder she had passed out from dehydration, then. 

Suddenly, the sound of the door bursting open startled her out of her thoughts. Glancing over her shoulder, Fallon was startled but happy to see Ash, Lucario, Greninja, and Pikachu rushing inside the Pokemon Center. Her happiness quickly changed to horror, however, as her eyes fell on the bundle wrapped in Ash's arms. 

"Charmander! No!" she cried out, rushing over to the group. "What happened? How did he get like this?" 

" _Not now,_ " Lucario said urgently, placing a paw on her shoulder. " _We'll explain in a moment, but we need to get Charmander to Nurse Joy first._ " 

Fallon bit her lip, nodding as she stepped aside to allow Ash to rush past her along with Greninja and Pikachu. Meanwhile, Lucario took her arm gently and led her back over to her armchair. She sat down reluctantly, her heart still pounding rapidly against her chest in horror and fear. 

" _What happened to your head?_ " the Aura Pokemon asked. 

"I hit it when I passed out, but never mind that now! What happened to Charmander?" she asked desperately. "How did you find him? Where did you find him?" 

" _We found Charmander on a rock about a mile away from here,_ " Lucario told her. " _He looked a bit tired and ill, but he said that he was waiting for you._ " 

"What? That doesn't make sense!" Fallon exclaimed, utterly bewildered. "His Pokeball fell off my belt when I passed out. I wouldn't have left Charmander on a rock to wait for me! And where was his Pokeball? He never comes out of it unless I tell him to!" 

" _I know, I know,_ " Lucario soothed her, placing a paw on the back of her left hand. 

Fallon let out a sigh, rubbing a hand over her eyes. Still, she was relieved to know that Lucario didn't believe that she had abandoned Charmander. In the midst of her relief, however, it took a few moments for her still-lagging mind to catch up with the situation. 

"Lucario..." she began slowly. "If Charmander wasn't inside his Pokeball...then where _was_ his Pokeball?" 

At that, the Aura Pokemon's eyes softened and he shook his head. Fallon stared at him, feeling her worry increase even further if that was at all possible. What could possibly be so bad to make Lucario look at her like that? 

"Lucario?" Fallon asked hesitantly. "What happened? Tell me. I need to know, please." 

" _When we came to the Pokemon Center earlier today,_ " Lucario began gently. " _We ran into your brother. Or, more accurately, we overheard him talking with a group of trainers._ " 

"And...what was he saying?" she inquired. 

The jackal hesitated, then replied, " _He was telling them about how he had tricked Charmander into staying on that rock. Of course, he made it sound as though_ he _was Charmander's trainer. When we confronted him and told him that Charmander would die if he was allowed to stay out for too long, especially with the approaching storm, he..._ " 

He trailed off, evidently not sure how to continue. Not that it would have mattered much if he had. Fallon's head was spinning far too much for her to focus on anything Lucario was saying at the moment. If what Lucario was telling her was true-not that she thought he would lie to her-then that meant...

" _He...well, he told us that he knew,_ " Lucario finished, snapping her out of her thoughts. 

"He knew," Fallon repeated. 

She was no fool. She knew instantly what the Aura Pokemon's words meant. But knowing what they meant and accepting them were two entirely different things altogether. 

"That...that can't be right," she insisted, shaking her head. "There's no way he would have done that. I mean...I know he doesn't like Charmander and everything, but that's too much even for him. He might abandon Pokemon every now and again, but he wouldn't try to _kill_ one." 

" _But he did,_ " Lucario said softly. " _I'm sorry, Fallon. I wish I could tell you differently. He told us that he intended for Charmander to die so that you would have no choice but to choose a stronger fire-type._ " 

But Fallon barely heard a word Lucario was saying. In her mind, she began to replay every conversation she had ever had with Damian concerning Charmander, wondering how she could have let something like this go amiss. How could she have missed all the signs? 

It was no secret to her that Damian hated Charmander, though why he disliked him the most out of all her Pokemon was still lost on her. They argued seemingly every other hour about her supposed affinity for "weak" Pokemon. And she had heard him comment on more than one occasion that she should have released Charmander long ago and saved them both a lot of trouble. So no, the fact that Damian had wanted Charmander out of the way for quite some time wasn't lost on her. 

But never in her life did she ever imagine he would go as far as to try to kill her Pokemon. 

What sort of trainer was she? How could she have let something like this happen? There must have been at least one or two signs that Damian would try something like this. Now, because of her negligence or at least her pathetic belief that her brother had at least a single shred of humanity in him, Charmander was in critical condition. If she had only been a little stronger, if she had only been able to hold on just a bit longer before she passed out, none of this would have happened. 

Then she shook her head, tossing the guilt aside. No, she couldn't blame herself. She hadn't done anything to hurt Charmander. The fire-lizard Pokemon's condition was entirely Damian's fault and no one else's. He had been the one to trick Charmander into staying on that rock. As her guilt finally faded, however, it was quickly replaced by another emotion altogether. 

Rage. Pure and utter rage. 

Ignoring Lucario's call for her to wait, Fallon leaped out of her chair and made a beeline toward the exit. As soon as she opened the door, she was hit by a blast of cold air, but she just ignored it, pushing her way onward. Her feet pounded heavily against the dirt path as the rain continued to fall steadily, soaking her through to the bone. 

She was going to find Damian. And one way or another, she was going to make him pay if it was the last thing she did.

* * *

It didn't take long for Fallon to find her brother. He was only about a mile and a half away from the Pokemon Center, apparently still on the lookout for rare Pokemon. Despite the fact that he must have been freezing, he refused to turn back. Instead, he remained under the shelter of a tall tree, scanning the area silently. 

Through the blood roaring in her ears, Fallon could hear Damian mutter to himself as he pulled out the remnants of a broken Pokeball. Although she couldn't hear everything that was being said, she did manage to catch the words "Charmander" and "serves both of them right". 

And at that moment, she snapped. 

Charging forward in a blind fury, she tackled her brother to the ground, sending them both sprawling into the mud. Despite being bigger and heavier than she was, Damian had been utterly unprepared for her attack, and her anger seemed to be lending her strength. He writhed and twisted beneath her, but she held firm, refusing to give even an inch. 

"You stupid, pathetic, horrid _demon_!" she shrieked in rage, slamming her fist down onto Damian's nose. 

"What are you doing? Get off of me!" he snarled up at her, trying in vain to push her off. 

"Shut up!" Fallon raged, slamming her fist down onto his nose again. "You don't get to speak anymore! _I'm_ the one who's going to be doing the talking now!" 

"I don't know why you've always had an issue with me, Damian." 

_Punch._

"But really, I don't care."

_Punch._

"You've always been a monster. That's all you'll ever be!"

_Punch._

"So I learned to live with it because our parents were so desperate for us to get along."

_Punch._

"And what a surprise, you were never interested! Really, though, I didn't expect anything else. So that didn't mean much to me." 

_Punch._

"But then what do you do? You go and try to kill my Charmander!" 

_Punch._

"You left him to die alone out in the middle of the forest!" 

_Punch._

"You made him think that I abandoned him!" 

_Punch._

"And why? Oh, right! Because _you_ didn't think that he was strong enough!" 

_Punch._

"And you know what, maybe this was partially my fault. I've let you get away with too much. Well, guess what, dear brother of mine? Starting today, that's going to end!" Fallon snarled, continuing to rain blow after blow upon Damian's face. "I'm going to make you pay for every awful thing you've ever done to me, and I _dare_ you to try to do something about it!" 

She continued punching her brother in the face over and over, her blows seeming to grow stronger with each passing second. Through the dark red haze that clouded her mind, the only thing she could think of was to cause Damian as much pain as possible. He had been allowed to get away with tormenting her for too long now. It was time someone finally taught him that there were consequences for his actions. 

But because of this, she didn't notice that her hands were slowly turning red from his blood. 

She didn't notice the moment that he stopped struggling, falling limp beneath her. 

She didn't notice the way his eyes stared without seeing, still filled with fear. 

Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around her, pulling her away from Damian. The unexpected touch snapped her back to reality, and Fallon found herself on her knees in the middle of the woods beside her brother's unmoving body, breathing heavily, her hands stained red and the knuckles on her right fist throbbing painfully. Someone gently turned her around to face them, and as her vision cleared, she was able to recognize Lucario. 

"Lucario..." she said hoarsely, her throat feeling oddly dry and scratchy. 

" _Shh. Just breathe, Fallon. Try to calm down,_ " he soothed her. 

Fallon closed her eyes, nearly passing out again as the full weight of what she had just done finally hit her. "Oh Arceus, I...I..." 

" _It's okay. Everything is going to be okay,_ " Lucario murmured softly, still holding her steady. " _I just need you to breathe, Fallon. Can you do that for me? In and out, just like that._ " 

And she tried to do as she was told, she tried to breathe in and out as Lucario had instructed. But no matter what she did, her heart continued to pound rapidly against her chest, making it impossible to breathe normally. Her knuckles were throbbing harder than ever, she was soaked through to the bone, and she felt as though she were simultaneously falling from the sky and being crushed under the weight of a mountain at once. 

_Oh Arceus, what have I done?_


	30. Repercussions

In the years to come, Fallon wouldn't have been able to tell how she was able to make it back to the Pokemon Center. Nor would she ever know how long she sat in the lobby, only half-listening as Lucario talked softly to her while Greninja and Ash sat beside her, offering comfort with their presence. Her mind felt as though it had decided to detach itself from her body and Lucario's voice sounded as though it were coming from the end of a dark tunnel despite the fact that he was sitting less than two feet in front of her, the feeling of his paw on her shoulder the only thing keeping her grounded in reality. 

Her brother was dead. She didn't need to hear Lucario's confirmation to know this; she had seen the evidence for herself. That much had been clear despite the frazzled state her mind was in. Her brother was dead, and, well...she wasn't really sure how she felt about that. 

_He deserved it,_ she tried to tell herself. _He's done nothing but hurt you for years, and he tried to kill Charmander. He would have killed Charmander if Ash and his friends hadn't found him on time, and if Charmander lived, he would probably have made sure he didn't fail next time. You did what had to be done._

But no matter how many times she repeated the words in her head, they sounded hollow and empty. She had murdered her brother. No matter what else he had done, he was still her family, and she had killed him. Maybe not intentionally-she certainly hadn't wanted to _kill_ him, just make him suffer a bit of pain for trying to murder Charmander. Still, she doubted whether that mattered much in the end. 

" _Fallon?_ " Lucario probed her gently, snapping her back to reality. " _Can you hear me?_ " 

At the sound of his voice, Fallon looked up, finally seeing the Aura Pokemon clearly for the first time since returning to the Pokemon Center. She blinked and nodded, glancing over at Ash, Greninja, and Pikachu, who were still seated beside her. She searched their faces, looking for any sign of fear or hatred but found only gentle concern. Rather than making her feel better, however, the hollow pit in her stomach seemed to deepen even further. 

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, her voice still hoarse. "I never meant for that to happen." 

"We know, Fallon," Ash said softly. 

"Is Charmander going to be okay?" Fallon asked, trying to push the night's events out of her mind. 

She didn't much care what happened to her at this point; she could handle whatever the law had to throw at her. After all, a murderer like her deserved to be punished. Right now, her only concern was making sure that Charmander was alright. As long as he was alive, that would be enough for her. 

"Charmander's alright now. He's asleep in his room, but he'll be ready to go by tomorrow morning," Ash told her, smiling slightly. "He's in the room next to Damian's-we tried to tell Nurse Joy that it wasn't a good idea, but there weren't too many options left for your brother." 

For a moment, all Fallon could feel was pure joy. Her thoughts didn't extend much further than the fact that her Charmander was going to make a full recovery. Then the rest of Ash's words finally hit her and she frowned. 

"She put Damian's body in one of the hospital rooms?" she asked, frowning. "Why would she do that?" 

"Body?" the raven-haired boy repeated, looking confused. Then his expression cleared. "You thought he was dead?" 

"Yes. After Lucario pulled me off of him, the way he looked..." 

" _You didn't see what you thought you saw,_ " Lucario explained. " _You were a little...overenthusiastic...but you didn't kill him. Knocked him out cold, yes, but you didn't kill him. I doubt whether you'd be strong enough to kill anyone simply by punching them, no offense or anything._ " 

"But..." Fallon shook her head, trying to wrap her head around this new information. "But I saw him. He was just...staring at me...as if..." 

" _He wasn't,_ " the dog-like Pokemon reassured her. " _I can't explain why you saw what you thought you saw. Maybe your mind was simply playing tricks on you. But I promise you, he isn't dead._ " 

At that, Fallon felt the weight on her shoulders disappear. Damian was _alive_. She wasn't a killer after all! And as overwhelmed by the day's events as she was, the tears came before she could stop them, blurring her vision as they streamed down her face. Her entire body was shaking violently and she was gasping for air, unable to breathe. Everything she had been holding in for years, all of the pain that had been inflicted by her brother's constant torment of her, the horror of believing herself to be a murderer, and the relief of finding out that she had been wrong in her assumptions came bursting forth all at once. There was nothing she could do to stop it. 

" _Shh. It's okay, it's okay,_ " Lucario said softly, and through a blur of tears, she could feel him squeezing her hand gently as Ash wrapped her in a comforting embrace. " _You're alright, Fallon. You're okay._ " 

And for once in her life, for the first time in what felt like years, she believed that everything was going to be alright as well. 

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Fallon found herself sitting in a chair beside Charmander's bed in the Pokemon Center. She watched as her fire-type's chest rose and fell steadily, a peaceful expression on his face. All things considered, he was looking much better than she had been expecting. At the very least, if she hadn't known any better, she would never have guessed that he had been at death's door not even three hours ago. 

"Fallon?" Nurse Joy probed her gently. "Can you explain what happened tonight?" 

The question finally brought her back to attention. Remembering at last why she was there in the first place, Fallon took a deep breath, searching for a way to explain herself. 

"Well, I'm sure you remember earlier, I woke up and found Charmander's Pokeball missing," she began slowly, and Nurse Joy nodded. "In order for you to really understand, there's something you need to know. For some reason, Damian has always hated Charmander. I don't know why, but ever since I picked him as my starter, he's always had it out for him. He keeps telling me that I need to release him because he's too weak. Not long ago, he had his Vaporeon attack Charmander with Hydro Pump for no reason." 

Nurse Joy frowned. "Go on." 

"After I woke up and found Charmander missing, Ash, Lucario, Greninja, and Pikachu brought him in, and...well, you saw the state he was in," Fallon went on, nodding over to her sleeping fire lizard. "Lucario told me that they found Charmander waiting on a rock, which didn't make sense because I hadn't let him out of his Pokeball before I passed out. And he told me...he told me that they overheard Damian boasting to a group of trainers about how he had tricked Charmander into staying there. And that Damian admitted that he meant for Charmander to get caught in that storm because it most likely would have killed him. He wanted to force me to pick a new fire-type for my team. So..." 

She hesitated for a moment, feeling her heart pounding rapidly against her chest. Here it was. The moment of truth had finally arrived. Once she confessed to her crimes, there would be no turning back. Officer Jenny would probably be at the Pokemon Center within the hour, and then...well, she wasn't entirely sure. She knew she would have to suffer some sort of repercussion for her actions, but she couldn't begin to fathom what they might be. 

One thing was for sure, though: whatever the law had to throw at her now, it couldn't possibly be anywhere near as bad as what she would have faced if she had actually killed Damian. 

"I went out earlier tonight," she said at last. "And..." 

Before she could continue, however, Lucario suddenly spoke up. " _Nurse Joy, would it be alright if I continued the story from here? I can tell you what happened tonight, and I think it would be best if we didn't force Fallon to relive these events. She's had a hard enough day as it is._ " 

"Of course, Lucario," Nurse Joy agreed, smiling kindly. 

Fallon blinked. _What on earth is he doing?_

" _After I told Fallon about what happened to Charmander, she decided to go looking for his Pokeball. And she found it. Unfortunately, as you probably know yourself, Damian was still out there as well, searching for more Pokemon to catch,_ " the jackal explained. " _As soon as he saw her with Charmander's Pokeball, he attacked her. He was determined to force her to get rid of Charmander one way or another. Fallon managed to get out of the way, but when she did, he fell forward and knocked himself out cold. It was a bad fall too. She got his blood on her hands as she was trying to move him to get him back here. But it wasn't her fault. She was only defending herself._ " 

"It's true," Ash piped up. "I was there too when Damian jumped at her. I wanted to help her, but everything was over too quickly." 

"Greninja, gren, ninja ja," Greninja said, nodding fervently. 

"Pika pika!" Pikachu added. 

Fallon couldn't believe her ears. Her friends were lying to Nurse Joy's face to cover for _her_. But why? She had punched her brother into the hospital. Why would they even consider helping her after everything she had done? 

"And you all saw this?" the pink-haired woman inquired. 

" _We did,_ " Lucario confirmed. 

Nurse Joy let out a sigh, nodding. "I admit that I had my concerns about Damian, but I'm supposed to be fair to all patrons, so I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. But it seems as though I was right to be worried. Thank you for explaining what happened, all of you. I'll call Officer Jenny here, and you can rest assured that Damian will be punished for his actions." 

"Thank you," Fallon whispered, not trusting herself to speak any louder. 

The kind-looking nurse smiled gently at her before getting up and walking out of the room, presumably heading off to send her message to Officer Jenny. Fallon, for her part, turned back to Charmander's sleeping form. He had rolled over onto his side now, the flame on the tip of his tail getting stronger by the minute. 

She could relax again now. Her friends' plan had worked, and she didn't have to worry about being tossed in prison for however long it might have been. Tomorrow morning, she could continue on her journey just like normal. 

But before she could do that, she had one more-no, two more things to do. 

"Ash," Fallon began hesitantly. "If you don't mind...would it be alright if I traveled with you from now on?" 

A couple of weeks ago, even a couple of days ago, she wouldn't even have questioned what his answer would have been. However, things had changed since then. Ash had just seen her beat up her brother, and Fallon wouldn't have been surprised if he wanted nothing to do with her. He might have helped cover for her, true, but that didn't necessarily mean he would be alright with her being around him. 

To her surprise, however, he beamed at her. "Of course! It would be great to have you with us!" 

"Really?" she asked, startled. "Do you mean that?" 

"Yeah! You're our friend, right? And friends should always stick together no matter what!" Ash said confidently. 

"Thanks, Ash," she chuckled, instantly feeling a bit better. "And there's just one more thing..." 

Once again, she hesitated, steeling herself as she prepared for what she was about to ask him to do for her. Her head and heart felt as though they were engaged in a civil war, her mind screaming at her to reconsider while her heart insisted that she was doing the right thing. Both sides were making compelling arguments if she did say so herself. But there was no point. She already knew what she had to do. 

"I want you to take Charmander," Fallon said finally. 

There it was. She had told her truth for the world to hear-or, at the very least, Ash and his Pokemon. It was too late to take anything back now. Her heart felt as though it were being ripped in half, but still, she refused to take back her words. 

Damian was alive. And while that was a good thing in the sense that it meant she wasn't a murderer, it also meant that he would undoubtedly try to hurt Charmander again as soon as he had the chance. Officer Jenny would most likely arrest Damian and he would probably spend at least a few years in jail or in some sort of correctional facility, but he wouldn't be there forever. As long as her brother was alive, Charmander would be in danger for however long he stayed under her care. 

" _Why?_ " Lucario asked softly, looking stunned. 

"It's too dangerous for him to stay with me. I know Damian will at least be out of the way for a bit, but he won't be forever," she explained, feeling more miserable with each passing second. "Once he's free again, I...I'm almost positive he's going to want revenge. And if Charmander is still with me, he's going to be his first target. Damian's already tried to kill him once, and I wouldn't put it past him to try to kill him again. But if _I'm_ not his trainer anymore...then maybe that will be enough to get him to leave him alone." 

" _What about your other Pokemon?_ " the Aura Pokemon inquired. 

"Damian doesn't care one way or another about them. I don't think I have to worry about him trying to hurt any of them," Fallon answered. "It's only Charmander that he has a problem with, and while I really don't know why, it's obvious that it's only gotten worse over time. And at this point, I don't see any possible way for things to get better." 

"Fallon..." Ash said quietly, looking at her with sorrow in his eyes. 

" _Please,_ Ash," she begged, hating how desperate she sounded. "Please do this. If not for me, then do it for Charmander. I'm not doing this because I don't want him anymore, you have to understand that. He's an incredible Pokemon and I couldn't have asked for a better starter. But he's never going to get the life he deserves if he stays with me." 

Ash studied her carefully for a moment, then nodded. "Alright," he agreed. "I'll take him." 

"Thank you," Fallon breathed, feeling a sigh of relief escape her lips. "You have no idea what this means to me, Ash." 

" _You're going to have to explain to Charmander about what's going to happen,_ " Lucario reminded her gently. 

"I know," she agreed, reaching out and stroking the Lizard Pokemon's head. "And I'm sorry, I really am. I'm sorry I couldn't do more to protect him and that things had to end up the way they did. I'm not the trainer he deserves to have, but I hope he knows that if I could, I would give up anything to turn back time and stop him from going through everything he's had to go through because of me." 

One day, she would be happy with her decision, she knew. But for now, she was exhausted by the day's events, and the grief of losing Charmander formed a hard knot in her chest. She didn't know how she would be able to handle the next several weeks, months, or possibly even years, able to watch her very first Pokemon flourishing under a new trainer but no longer able to guide and care for him in the same way she would have if he were still hers. 

But it had to be done. There weren't many things that Fallon wanted from her Pokemon. She didn't care if they lost every single battle or if they weren't pretty, cute, or cool-looking. Indeed, the only thing she really wanted was for them to be safe and happy. And that was the only thing she wanted for Charmander-even if it meant she was going to lose him. 


	31. A New Family

Needless to say, Charmander was less than thrilled about the prospect of parting with Fallon. Upon hearing the news that he would be transferred over to Ash's care, the Lizard Pokemon had immediately tried to stuff himself inside Fallon's bag, only for the young redhead to pull him out again. Even so, he refused to leave her side, clinging to her arms desperately as she tried to untangle herself from him. 

Watching the scene before him, Greninja felt torn. On one hand, he understood where Fallon was coming from. Damian had already tried to kill Charmander once, and there was no reason for her or any of them, really, to think that he wouldn't try it again as soon as he had the chance. But on the other hand, he would be lying if he said he didn't have a great deal of sympathy for Charmander's feelings on the matter as well. Greninja couldn't imagine what it would feel like if he had to part ways with Ash. 

"Charmander, please listen to me. I know you want to stay with me, but I need you to go with Ash from now on," Fallon pleaded gently. 

" _But why?_ " Charmander cried out. " _Don't you like me anymore?_ " 

" _Of course she does, Charmander. It's nothing to do with that,_ " Lucario said softly. " _She loves you very much. But it isn't safe for you to stay with her anymore._ " 

" _Why not?_ " the little orange lizard demanded. " _Why isn't it safe? What's wrong?_ " 

"Because if you do, Damian will try to kill you again," Ash answered bluntly. 

Charmander blinked, staring at the messy-haired trainer in confusion. " _W-what? When did Damian try to kill me? I know he told me to stay on that rock, but that doesn't mean he wanted to kill me, right?_ " 

"But he did," Ash said softly, his eyes filled with compassion. "He told us himself. You remember that storm last night, right? He wanted you to get caught in it because a storm like that would most likely kill you, and he wanted to force Fallon into picking a new fire-type. If we hadn't found you in time, you would have died." 

For a few moments, the Lizard Pokemon just stared at Ash, his eyes wide. Greninja could almost hear the thoughts whirling in his mind as he tried to think of another excuse for Damian's actions, another excuse that explained why he had apparently been left to die out in the forest. But the facts were indisputable. Charmander was no fool; he must have been well aware of what Fallon's brother thought of him. And there was no logical reason for him to leave Charmander alone in the forest, especially when everyone had known about the approaching storm.

Fallon gently placed Charmander back on the floor, reaching out and petting him. "It'll be alright, buddy," she said softly. "We're all going to be traveling together from now on, so it's not like you're never going to see me again. You'll just be under Ash's care from now on. But I'll still be around." 

" _You're not going anywhere?_ " Charmander asked, peering up at her. 

"Nowhere," she promised. "It'll be like nothing ever changed." 

"And I'll take care of you," Ash added. "We'll get stronger together, and you're going to be great friends with everyone, Charmander. I just know it. And Fallon will still be with you even if she isn't going to be your real trainer anymore." 

The little lizard looked over at Ash. " _You promise?_ " 

"I promise," Ash replied solemnly-or at least as solemnly as a not-quite-eleven-year-old boy could manage. He smiled encouragingly down at Charmander. "You're going to have a great time getting to know everyone. You'll see."

" _Yeah! Ash is an awesome trainer and everyone's really nice! You're going to love being part of the team,_ " Pikachu said cheerfully. 

Seeing that Charmander was still hesitant, Greninja bent down to talk to him. " _Think, Charmander. Do you really think Fallon would give you over to Ash if she didn't know for certain that he was going to treat you properly? Or that he wasn't going to take you away from her forever?_ " 

" _N-no, I suppose not,_ " the Lizard Pokemon agreed uncertainly. 

" _Believe it or not, Charmander, I understand how you're feeling,_ " Lucario spoke up, bending down so that he was eye level, or at least as close to eye level as possible, with the tiny orange lizard. " _I know what it's like to have to separate from someone you care about. And I'm not going to say that there's going to come a day that you don't miss Fallon because a part of you will always wish for things to be the way they used to. But you learn to live with it. You'll form new bonds with new people and Pokemon. And don't forget, she isn't going anywhere. Maybe things will be a little different than how they used to be, but she's still going to be a part of your life._ " 

"Charmander," Fallon said softly. "No matter what, I'll always be your friend." 

Charmander continued to stare at Fallon for several moments, his eyes filled with sorrow. Finally, however, he nodded and walked over to Ash, allowing the boy to tap him gently over the head with an empty Pokeball. Greninja watched as he was sucked inside, the Pokeball shaking a few times before lying still and emitting a soft ding, signaling a successful capture. 

_That's it,_ Greninja thought. _Ash caught Charmander, and he's part of our team now._

But unlike with previous captures, there was no sense of satisfaction, no sense of excitement at the prospect of a new teammate. Everyone would be thrilled to have Charmander around, Greninja knew, and he knew as well that they would do everything in their power to keep the little fire-type happy. Right now, however, they were still exhausted by the events of the previous night, and the grief in Fallon's eyes that she was desperately trying to hide tugged painfully at everyone's hearts. 

Ash stood up, placing Charmander's Pokeball on his belt before walking over to Fallon. "It's going to be okay," he said softly, smiling gently at her. "I'll take good care of Charmander, I promise." 

"I know you will," she murmured. 

"And hey, who knows? Maybe one day, you'll be able to have him back again," he added. 

Fallon smiled sadly but didn't look convinced. "Maybe." 

Before any of them could say anything else, however, they were interrupted by a shout of rage from further down the hallway. Greninja groaned silently as he recognized Damian's voice. Exchanging a resigned glance with Ash, he crept down the hall alongside his best friend, listening intently as the sound of arguing reached their ears. 

"What do you mean, you're suspending my license for six years? You can't do that!" Greninja heard Damian snap. "I didn't do anything wrong! I'm innocent here, I tell you!" 

"Is that so? Then would you care to explain why you attacked Fallon in the middle of the forest last night?" a voice that he recognized as Officer Jenny's asked coldly. 

"I didn't attack anyone!" Damian said hotly. "Where's your proof that I even did anything?" 

"I have statements from four witnesses who all say they saw you jump her when she wasn't looking," Nurse Joy spoke up. Her voice was hard and angry, nothing at all like the sweet, kind woman he was used to hearing. 

"They're lying!" he snarled, and Greninja could easily picture the blue-haired trainer struggling against Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy as he tried to fight his way to the door. "They're all lying! I never did anything to anyone! That stupid little bitch made it all up! I swear to Arceus, I'm going to kill her! I'll snap her neck! She deserves to die for this! I'll make sure that nobody ever finds 'what's left of her! I'll gouge her eyes out and leave her to be picked at by the Spearow and Pidgey! And once I'm through with her, I'll get that stupid Charmander if it's the last thing I do! I'll-" 

"ENOUGH!" Officer Jenny shouted, effectively silencing Damian. "Young man, I think I've heard quite enough out of you. You'll be coming with me, and if you even think about trying to resist, I'll see to it that you never train another Pokemon again!" 

At the sound of the door opening, Greninja quickly ducked into a nearby room along with Ash, Fallon, Lucario, and Pikachu. Through the crack in the doorway, he could hear Damian snarling curses at Fallon, Ash, Charmander, Nurse Joy, and Officer Jenny as he was dragged out of the Pokemon Center. As soon as the voices had faded away, Greninja turned to face Fallon, who had taken a seat on the edge of the bed. 

" _Are you alright?_ " he asked worriedly. 

Although she couldn't understand him in the same way that Ash could, she got the gist of it. She nodded silently, her face still pale and her eyes wide. Greninja felt a pang of sorrow for the young girl, but he couldn't blame her. He himself had been shocked by the fury and vitriol Damian had been spitting at her (or, well, about her), so he couldn't imagine how she must have felt about it all. 

" _Well,_ " Lucario remarked, looking stunned himself but making an obvious effort to hide it. " _I suppose all's well that ends well, then._ " 

"Yeah, but my parents still don't know about this. They think Damian and I are still traveling together," Fallon pointed out, biting her lip. "I can't imagine what I'm going to say to them." 

"I don't think you'll have to worry. Officer Jenny will probably send them a message, won't she?" Ash reminded her. He smiled encouragingly at the ginger-haired girl. "Don't worry about it! I'm sure they'll understand. And we'll figure out what to do together from now on, right?" 

"Right," she agreed, perking up slightly. 

Ash's grin widened before he suddenly spun around, rushing out of the room. "Race you to the cafeteria, Fallon!" 

"Hey, no fair!" Fallon laughed, chasing after the messy-haired boy. "You got a head start!" 

" _Ash, don't waste your energy! We still have a long day of traveling ahead of us!_ " Greninja shouted after his best friend. 

Shaking his head to himself, he watched as Ash, Pikachu, and Fallon disappeared around the corner and out of sight. Once again, the boy's tireless energy never ceased to amaze him, and Greninja could already tell that he and Lucario would be in for a long day of chasing Ash around the Kanto region. Still, he couldn't deny that it had its benefits. At least it provided Fallon with a much-needed distraction from losing Charmander. 

" _Arceus above, does he ever stop running?_ " Lucario asked in fond exasperation, shaking his head. " _I can't remember the last time he sat still, do you?_ " 

" _I suppose when he's sleeping...though I'm pretty sure I've seen him sleepwalk at least a few times, so who knows?_ " Greninja joked. 

Lucario rolled his eyes but smiled all the same. Much like Greninja, it was impossible for him to ever truly be annoyed with Ash. " _Come on, let's make sure Ash didn't crash into the buffet table again._ " 

Greninja nodded and picked up Ash's bag, waiting for Lucario to do the same with Fallon's. Together, the two Pokemon made their way down to the Pokemon Center's cafeteria, ready for a good meal as well as the start of their adventures with the newest members of their little family. 


	32. Troubled Beginnings

The difference between traveling with Damian and traveling with Ash and his Pokemon was almost unbelievable. For the first time in her life, Fallon no longer had to walk on eggshells every time she so much as breathed. She didn't have to look over her shoulder every five minutes to make sure that nobody was going to attack her Pokemon while they were training. And she was allowed to speak without being shouted at, belittled, or hit. It almost felt too good to be true, and more than once, she found herself pinching her arm just to make sure she wasn't dreaming. 

If there was any downside to traveling with Ash, it would probably be that she still had to see Charmander every day. But despite the painful twinge she could feel in her heart every time she watched Charmander engaging in a practice battle with Pikachu or chatting happily with Bulbasaur and Sylveon, Fallon made a conscious effort not to dwell on what she had lost. It wasn't as though she would never see him again, she reminded herself, even if things wouldn't be quite the way they used to. As long as he was safe, that was good enough for her. 

At the moment, Fallon was walking through the forest with Ash, gathering berries to be made into medicine and Pokeblocks later. For once, none of his Pokemon were accompanying him, as they had all chosen to remain back at the camp in order to train and rest up. In fact, Lucario and Greninja had both made an effort to get the raven-haired boy to take a break as well but to no avail. Somehow, despite the fact that they had been walking nonstop for almost three hours straight, he still hadn't lost any energy. Fallon didn't know how he managed it; her own legs were aching horribly, but Ash barely seemed affected. 

"Ash, can we slow down?" she called out. "My legs hurt and we've been walking for hours." 

"Huh?" Ash turned around, his expression filling with guilt at the sight of her lagging behind. "Oh, yeah. Sorry about that, Fallon. You can sit down and I'll see if I can find any good berries around here." 

"Thank you," Fallon breathed in relief, taking a seat on a fallen tree. 

As she watched, Ash scanned the small clearing, looking for any berries that they might be able to add to their recipes. Eventually, he spotted a tamato berry bush hidden behind a bit of fallen debris. While he filled up the rest of his basket with the spicy fruits, Fallon turned her attention to a Pidgey nesting in a nearby tree. The little bird Pokemon was munching happily on an oran berry, chirping happily with each bite. She smiled to herself, the sight of the contented expression on Pidgey's face sending a feeling of warmth coursing through her veins. 

"Done! That should be plenty for now!" Ash declared suddenly, taking a seat beside her on the fallen tree. 

"Glad to hear it," Fallon chuckled, finally turning her attention away from the Pidgey. "Picking the tamato berries was a good choice. Charmander's going to love those ones. Spicy Pokeblocks and Pokemon food are his favorite. Must be a fire-type thing, I guess." 

"Must be," the raven-haired boy agreed, grinning. He stretched his arms behind his head and added, "So, do you want to head back now or do you want to stay here a bit longer? I'm not really in any hurry to go anywhere, plus I'm pretty sure the others still want to rest. Blegh." 

Fallon hesitated for a moment, then replied tentatively, "Well, if you're not in any hurry, why don't we take a walk? I'd like to explore the forest a bit more if that's alright." 

"Sure thing!" Ash said happily, smiling brightly at her. "A walk sounds really awesome, actually. And maybe we'll even meet some new Pokemon along the way! Wouldn't that be so cool?" 

"Very cool," she agreed, inwardly marveling at how easily he had agreed to her request. If she had been traveling with Damian, she wouldn't even have dared to ask. 

Together, they walked out of the clearing and down an unfamiliar path in the forest, taking care not to let any of the berries spill out of the basket. Every few minutes or so, Fallon would stop to admire a patch of flowers or a mark left on a tree by a long-ago Pokemon battle. She had never been given the chance to take in all of the sights, sounds, and scents of the Kantonian wilderness, so she was making sure to take every opportunity to make up for lost time now. Part of her felt guilty for forcing Ash to stop so often as well, but if he was at all annoyed with her, he didn't show it. 

"Oh! Look at these!" she exclaimed as she spotted a patch of bluebells. "Aren't they pretty?" 

"They are," Ash agreed, coming over to look at the flowers as well. "Sylveon would like those. But I'd feel bad picking them." 

"Me too," Fallon admitted. "Still, at least we get to look at them, right?" 

She continued to gaze at the bluebells, trying to commit every detail about their shape and color to mind. It was times like these that Fallon desperately wished she had a camera. But her parents had taught her how to be practical with her spending, and as much as it pained her, she had to admit that a camera wasn't exactly high on her list of necessities. She already spent enough on food and medicine as it was. 

"Hey, Fallon?" Ash spoke up again suddenly. "When we get to Vermillion City, do you want to challenge the gym first, or should I?" 

"The gym?" Fallon repeated, blinking. "Oh! No, you don't have to worry about that. I've actually decided that I won't be taking on the gyms just yet." 

After losing to Brock, she had done some serious soul-searching (or, well, as serious as a girl her age could get) and came to the conclusion that she simply wasn't ready. As much as she dreamed of winning the Pokemon league like any other trainer, she couldn't deny that she still had a lot left to learn. Besides, with all the professions the Pokemon world had to offer, Fallon wasn't about to commit to one lifestyle just yet. The last thing she wanted was to regret the path she had chosen. 

Ash looked puzzled. "How come you're not challenging them?" 

"Oh, well, no reason, really," she answered with a shrug. "I'm just not sure I'm really ready to take on the gyms yet, you know? I mean, I'm sure my Pokemon are, but me? I don't know." 

"Yeah, that's fair," he conceded. 

"I also just want to make sure that the path I choose is the right one for me," Fallon added. "I mean, there are so many options out there for us as trainers. We could become doctors, we could become coordinators, we could become scientists and research fossil Pokemon, we could become the Pokemon league champion. And that's not even half of it. I don't want to pick one and then wake up twenty years down the road and realize that my life doesn't have any meaning." 

Ash cocked his head to the side. "I think I get what you mean, but isn't it kind of our job to add meaning to whatever we choose to do with our lives? I mean, if we keep waiting around for the perfect life to fall into our hands, we'll just be sitting by forever. Sometimes, what we do doesn't have a clear meaning, so why not just make our own?" 

_It's not that simple, Ash. If I knew how to add meaning to my life, I'd have done it by now,_ she thought tiredly. Out loud, however, she asked, "What gives your life meaning, Ash?" 

She fully expected his answer to be something along the lines of Pokemon battles or his aura training, the latter of which she had quickly learned was extremely strenuous after she made the mistake of volunteering to join Ash and Greninja in a race around the forest. Given the messy-haired boy's tendency to charge headfirst into everything as well as his seemingly tireless energy, she figured that anything that added meaning to his life would have to reflect those qualities. To her surprise, however, his actual response was very, very different. 

"Well..." Ash spoke up again after a few moments. "It's probably going to sound weird, but...it's really just the small things." 

"The small things?" Fallon repeated, blinking in confusion. "What do you mean?" 

"The small things. Like the way Sylveon sits next to me during meals so she can be the first to be petted afterward," he explained. "Or the way Lucario smiles after I've finished an aura training session that lets me know I've done a good job. The way Greninja lets Charmander get away with sneaking up on him and pranking him because he knows it makes him laugh." 

Fallon snorted with laughter at the last one. At the same time, however, she felt touched. Even if Charmander wasn't her Pokemon anymore, it still meant the world to her that Greninja was making such an effort to keep him happy. 

"And that's not all either," Ash went on. "There's also the way the sky looks when the sun goes down. And the way the stars shine at night. The way the world goes quiet during those times because it's the perfect time to think without having to worry about being interrupted." 

"Wow," Fallon remarked, feeling slightly awed. "When you put it like that..." 

"See?" he said, beaming at her. "Don't get me wrong, it's awesome to want to be like someone like Lance or Professor Oak. But you and I aren't Lance or Professor Oak. We're not the champions of Kanto, and we're definitely not world-famous researchers. And most people in the world aren't and won't ever be either. But that's all okay. We aren't going to become legends and have our stories passed on for generations, but our stories will still mean the world to our loved ones." 

She shook her head. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're a lot older than almost eleven years old." 

"Yeah...sorry," Ash chuckled, looking a bit sheepish.

"Oh, don't be sorry. That was a good speech, actually," Fallon admitted, smiling back at her friend. 

"Thanks!" he said happily, grinning. 

Ash Ketchum was certainly something else. On one hand, he certainly acted the way she would expect an eleven-year-old boy (or almost in his case) to behave, running around constantly and laughing at everything and nothing. On the other hand, there were times, such as now, when he would say something that made him seem wise beyond his years. 

And maybe he was right, she reflected. Maybe she didn't have to worry about what the right path was for her, but rather _making_ the path she chose feel right. If nothing else, she at least knew that she wanted to be a trainer that her Pokemon were happy with. She might not have been an Elite Four member or a mega evolution guru, she might not even have ever won a gym battle, but she could at least give her Pokemon the life they deserved. From there, though...well, she would just have to wait and see. 

Lost in thought as she was, Fallon didn't notice the moment when Ash suddenly stumbled forward. When she finally came back to reality, she was horrified to see the messy-haired trainer sprawled out on the ground before her, unconscious. 


	33. Hospitals

When Ash awoke again, he was puzzled to find himself in a hospital room inside a Pokemon Center. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he became aware of a gentle pressure on his right hand. Blinking rapidly to clear his vision, he turned his head to see Greninja, Lucario, Fallon, and Pikachu sitting by his bed. Greninja was grasping his hand gently, and as their gazes locked, the frog Pokemon's eyes lit up with relief. 

" _Ash! You're alright!_ " he exclaimed happily, hugging him tightly. 

"I...yeah, I'm fine," Ash mumbled, rubbing his eyes. "What happened?" 

" _You passed out. Gave us all quite a fright too,_ " Lucario told him from his seat next to Greninja. He scanned Ash's face, his eyes filled with worry. 

"I...I passed out?" he repeated, stupefied. 

"While we were out on our walk," Fallon explained. "We were talking, and then you just...I don't know. It all happened so fast." 

Lucario glanced over at the young girl. " _Did he seem at all tired to you?_ " 

She shook her head, frowning. "No, not at all. Actually, he had even more energy than I did." 

"I don't remember being tired either," Ash spoke up. "It's like Fallon said, we were just walking and, well, the next thing I know, I'm waking up here." 

" _But Nurse Joy didn't seem to think there was anything wrong..._ " Greninja said, looking even more worried. 

Ash just shrugged, not knowing what to say. Truth be told, he was as confused as everyone else. Why _had_ he passed out? He supposed he could understand it happening if he had pushed himself too hard, but he didn't remember taking things that far. But if Nurse Joy hadn't been able to find anything wrong with him, then what other explanation could there be? 

"Could it have been dehydration?" Fallon suggested. "I passed out from dehydration not too long ago-you know, when Damian decided to..." 

"But I had a drink of water while we were setting up our camp, and that was only an hour before that," Ash pointed out. 

"Oh yeah, that's true," she noted. She frowned. "Have you ever passed out like that before?" 

He hesitated for a few moments, trying to rack his brain to see if he could remember another time it might have happened. When he came up with nothing, he shook his head and replied, "No, I'm...I'm pretty sure this was the first time." 

" _I've been around Ash for almost three years, and I haven't seen him pass out like that either,_ " Lucario informed Fallon, who nodded. 

" _Nor I,_ " Greninja added. 

Pikachu, who had remained silent up until this point, spoke up. " _Maybe you're starting to come down with something? I mean, with how much you run around all the time, if you're starting to get sick and not resting up, your body isn't going to respond to it very well._ " 

Ash tilted his head to the side. "I guess, but I don't _feel_ sick," he pointed out. "I feel fine. I don't know why it happened, but it could have just been some freak accident, right?" 

Even as he spoke the words, he could tell that his friends weren't convinced by them. Not that he could blame them in this case; it _was_ odd that he had fainted out of nowhere. But he felt perfectly fine and he hadn't ever passed out before, at least not that he could remember. Maybe it _was_ just a freak incident. 

Then again, how often did anyone pass out for no reason at all? In fairness, Ash had only seen a handful of people faint during his lifetime, but there had always been a reason behind it. One of the boys in his class, Mark, had passed out at the sight of blood in a film the class had been watching. A year later, a girl named Anna had fainted in the middle of a lesson on type matchups-something to do with her blood sugar, he didn't remember exactly what had happened. And he could faintly recall seeing his father pass out in the living room just weeks before his death, although Ash wasn't sure if the two events were connected or not. He knew his father had been ill, however, having heard him whispering about it with Delia when they thought he was asleep. 

Not that he knew much about his father's illness, he realized. The only things he really knew about it were what he had been able to pick up on from eavesdropping on his parents, most of which included words he couldn't begin to comprehend. Ash did, however, recall hearing his name brought up a few times in conversation, although he had never been able to figure out what context it was being used in. 

" _Well, one thing's for sure,_ " Greninja said, snapping him back to reality. " _Freak accident or not, you'll be staying in that bed until tomorrow afternoon at the earliest. And we'll see how you're progressing from there._ " 

"Aw," Ash groaned. "But we've got our gym battle coming up soon. And I wanted to do some more training with my aura." 

" _The gym isn't going anywhere, Ash. Right now, it's more important that you heal up,_ " Lucario said gently. 

"Heal up from what? I'm totally fine!" he protested. "Really, there's nothing to worry about." 

The jackal sighed. " _Ash, I'm not a doctor and I certainly don't intend on pretending to be one, but even I know that nobody just faints out of nowhere. We might not know what's wrong, but that doesn't mean that everything's all fine and dandy. If you don't take at least a little time to rest, then whatever it is will only get worse._ " 

"But-" Ash started to argue back only to be interrupted by Greninja. 

" _It's only going to be for one more day, Ash. We're not asking you to stay in bed forever,_ " the frog Pokemon soothed him, placing a hand on his shoulder. 

"I guess so," he sighed in disappointment, accepting defeat for now. What had he done to get stuck with the most overprotective Pokemon in history? "I was just looking forward to having my gym battle, that's all." 

" _I know, and I'm sorry. But we don't want to risk you getting sick,_ " Greninja said softly. 

"And hey, don't worry! We'll all be here to keep you company," Fallon piped up, giving him an encouraging smile. "It'll be alright, Ash. The day will pass by before you know it, and you'll be out of here in no time." 

Ash grinned back at her, feeling slightly cheered by her enthusiasm. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. Even if he was confined to his hospital bed for a day, at least he wouldn't be alone. But then the rest of Lucario's words registered in his still-lagging mind. 

"Do you really think there's something wrong with me?" he asked, turning back to the Aura Pokemon. 

" _I don't know, Ash,_ " Lucario sighed. " _I told you before, I'm not a doctor. I don't know why you passed out, but I doubt it was for no reason. If there is something wrong, we can only hope that it's something minor._ " 

"Alright," Ash murmured. 

It wasn't the most satisfying answer in the world, but what else could he do at this point? Nurse Joy hadn't been able to find anything wrong, and none of his friends were doctors. The only thing he could really do was rest up so that he could get back to traveling. 

Fortunately, any talk of his health ceased after that. For the next hour, Ash sat back and tried to relax, laughing along with the others as Greninja recounted a story of a prank he had pulled on one of his old trainers. Of course, having been friends with the frog Pokemon as long as he had, he was already familiar with the tale, but that didn't really matter. He appreciated the attempt at entertaining him nonetheless. 

" _You should have seen his face when he got out of the shower. His hair had turned bright pink!_ " Greninja told them, earning a fit of raucous laughter from the rest of the group. 

"Brilliant," Fallon snickered after Ash had translated the story for her. "That must have been expensive to get fixed. His parents probably weren't too happy about that." 

" _Have you pranked all of your trainers?_ " Pikachu asked. 

Greninja shook his head. " _Nah, only two or three of them. Most of the time, I wasn't with them long enough to think of a good one._ " 

" _How long does it take you to think of a good prank?_ " Lucario asked curiously. 

" _Depends,_ " the frog Pokemon answered. 

" _On what?_ " 

" _A few things. One, on how creative I'm feeling that particular day. Two, on how stupid the person or Pokemon I'm pranking is._ " 

"I've been trying to think of a prank to pull on Lucario for a while now, but he always seems to see it coming," Ash admitted with a sigh.

The jackal smirked at him. " _And you will never get away with it._ "

"I'll think of something, just you wait," he threatened, narrowing his eyes.

" _I'm sure you will, Ash,_ " Lucario replied cheerfully, patting him on the shoulder. 

Ash tried to glare at Lucario but failed and ended up cracking a smile. "I swear I'm going to get you one day."

" _Don't worry, Ash. I haven't been able to prank him yet either,_ " Greninja reassured him.

Ash chuckled and turned his head to look out the window, noting absentmindedly the rain that had started falling outside. He watched as the droplets splattered the glass, blurring what he could see of the world beyond the confines of the Pokemon Center. In the distance, he could hear children laughing and splashing about in puddles, and he smiled to himself. At least someone was enjoying the weather. 

No, staying in the Pokemon Center for one day wouldn't be so terrible. His friends were still there to keep him company, and as long as they were around, it was impossible to be too bored. And his health was perfectly normal, of that he was almost certain. As soon as his one day had passed, he would be back to his normal routine as if nothing had happened. All he had to do was be patient. 


	34. The Dream

_The gray clouds darkened the sky overhead as rain fell steadily, the droplets splashing down onto the branches swaying in the gentle breeze before falling to form puddles on the ground. Through a small gap in the clouds, Greninja could faintly make out a ray of sunlight, but it provided little warmth. Of course, being a water-type, the rain didn't affect him much, but he could have done with a little less cold._

_He didn't have time to worry about that, however. A few yards ahead, Ash was standing with his back facing toward him, gazing out into the forest. Despite the fact that he was practically soaked to the skin by now, the messy-haired boy didn't appear to be bothered by it. He didn't even appear to notice how cold it was even though he was only wearing a short-sleeve jacket, jeans, and a pair of sneakers. Instead, he continued to stand there, watching something that apparently only he could see._

_"_ Ash, come back. We need to get inside, _" Greninja called out._

_There was no response. Thinking that perhaps Ash just hadn't heard him over the rain, he raised his voice and called out again._

_"_ Ash, let's go. You're going to get sick if you keep standing out here in this weather, _" he insisted._

_But Ash just continued to remain silent, still staring out into the forest. Frowning, Greninja took a few steps forward. Maybe he was still too far away._

_"_ Let's get back inside. I don't want you to catch a cold, and you must be freezing, _" he pleaded._

_Still nothing. Greninja stared at Ash, hoping, waiting for a response, but it never came._

_What was going on? Ash had spaced out on occasion before, but he always came back down to earth as soon as Greninja called out to him. Why was it suddenly so difficult to get his attention now? Greninja felt a pang of worry, wondering if he had said or done something to upset his friend._

_But before he could ponder this possibility any further, Ash suddenly turned around and looked directly at him. His normally spiky hair had been completely flattened and his clothes were soaked through, but he was smiling that same sweet, bright smile with that same look of childlike wonder in his eyes that never failed to melt Greninja's heart. As he watched, Ash gave a small wave before slowly turning around again and walking deeper into the forest._

_"_ Ash? _" Greninja called out in bewilderment. "_ Where are you going? _"_

_He didn't expect to get a response, so he was unsurprised when Ash just kept walking. With a sigh, Greninja broke into a jog. Whatever had gotten into the boy now, it could be addressed once he had gotten him inside and out of the rain._

_This time, however, something was different. Whereas it would normally only take him a few moments to catch up to Ash, for whatever reason, he couldn't do it this time. No matter how much he quickened his pace, somehow, Ash continued to draw further and further away from him despite the fact that he still appeared to be walking at the same speed he had started. Within minutes, Greninja was running at a full sprint through the forest, but it was no use. Ash was still walking ahead, just barely visible through the rain and the thick grove of trees._

_"_ Ash, come back! Wait for me! _" he shouted desperately. "_ Where are you going? I can't keep up with you! _"_

_But it was no use. Exhausted and unable to run any longer, Greninja staggered forward and dropped onto his knees. Breathing heavily to catch his breath, he watched in despair as Ash continued to walk away from him, growing smaller and smaller until he disappeared from view._

* * *

Greninja awoke with a start, his heart beating frantically against his chest and the same cold sense of dread still gripping him. As his mind slowly returned to the present, he stared around the hospital room frantically, checking to make sure Ash was still there. When he saw the raven-haired boy sleeping peacefully on his bed, he breathed out a sigh of relief, leaning back against the armchair he had claimed for himself. 

Tonight was the fifth night in a row that he'd had that dream. Every single night, it went the exact same way. He would find himself standing in the middle of a forest in a rainstorm, calling out to Ash so they could go back inside and get out of the weather. Rather than heeding his warnings, however, Ash would simply smile warmly at him before turning around and walking deeper into the woods. No matter how fast Greninja ran or how much he pleaded with him, the boy never returned to his side. Instead, he would just keep walking further and further away until all Greninja could do was watch helplessly as his best friend disappeared into the rainstorm. 

He wasn't entirely sure if he believed in the notion that dreams had hidden meanings, so he didn't know what to make of it. Greninja just wished that Ash wouldn't walk away from him for once. 

A quick glance at the clock on the nightstand told him that it was only half-past one in the morning. It would be at least another few hours until Ash and Lucario, the earliest risers of the group, were awake. Closing his eyes, Greninja tried to fall back asleep, but fear of entering the same dream sequence prevented him from being able to do so. In the end, he gave up and got out of his armchair, slowly making his way over to the other side of the room and staring out the window. 

" _Greninja? What are you doing awake?_ " came the extremely tired voice of Lucario from behind him. Turning around, he saw the jackal sitting up from his own chair, rubbing his eyes tiredly. 

" _Oh-sorry, Lucario. I just wasn't sleeping very well. I didn't mean to wake you,_ " Greninja apologized. 

Lucario shook his head. " _No, it's alright. I just woke up because I wanted a glass of water. Is everything alright with you?_ " 

He shrugged. " _Yeah, I guess. It's like I said, I just haven't been able to sleep tonight._ " 

" _Worried about Ash?_ " the jackal asked sympathetically. " _It's alright, I'm worried about him too. But he's a strong kid; he'll be fine._ " 

" _It's not just that,_ " Greninja corrected his friend. " _I mean, it's part of it, don't get me wrong. But it's also just that...well..._ " 

He hesitated briefly, unsure whether to continue. Even though Lucario was one of his closest friends, he still didn't feel like admitting that he'd had a bad dream. Of course, Greninja knew how ridiculous he was being- _everyone_ had nightmares from time to time. It was perfectly natural to be woken up by them. Yet somehow, his pride prevented him from opening up. 

As it turned out, however, he didn't need to. Lucario studied him carefully for a few moments before inquiring softly, " _Bad dream, then?_ " 

Startled, Greninja snapped his head around to face the Aura Pokemon. " _How did you know?_ " 

" _I might not be able to synchronize with you the way Ash is able to, but I've known you for three years, Greninja. I know what you look like after you've woken up from a nightmare,_ " Lucario told him seriously. " _So, do you want to talk about it?_ " 

Greninja shook his head. " _It's...I mean, I don't know. It's kind of stupid, to be honest. I've just been having this dream where I'm out in the forest, trying to get Ash to come out of a rainstorm, but I never can. And the dream always ends with him disappearing. And it's happened five nights in a row now, and every night it plays out exactly the same way._ " 

Even to his own ears, it sounded utterly ridiculous. He probably wouldn't have believed the story was true if he hadn't been suffering through the recurring nightmare himself. Rather than teasing him or laughing, however, Lucario just frowned thoughtfully. 

" _I see...well, if you've been having the same dream five nights in a row, that's probably not a coincidence,_ " the Aura Pokemon mused. " _So there must be a reason behind it._ " 

" _You believe me?_ " Greninja asked, startled. 

" _I do. And I want to help get to the bottom of it,_ " Lucario answered, still studying him carefully. " _You've been with Ash for three years and never had any nightmares like this until now, so I don't think it has anything to do with a fear of being abandoned..._ " 

" _No,_ " he interrupted, shaking his head. If there was one thing Greninja was absolutely certain of, one truth that he knew in his heart of hearts, it was that Ash would never abandon him. 

" _-but I can't really think of a lot of other possibilities,_ " the jackal finished. " _Dream interpretation was never really my thing._ "

" _No kidding,_ " Greninja snorted, though without any annoyance or malice. Stifling a yawn, he added, " _Don't worry, I never bothered to learn much about it either._ " 

It was far from the most helpful talk he'd had with Lucario, but at this point, Greninja was too tired to mind. Nodding sleepily, he walked back over to his armchair and sat down, keeping one eye trained on Ash's still-sleeping form. He struggled to stay awake, not wanting to take his eyes off of the boy. After a few minutes, however, his exhaustion won out and a wave of darkness blanketed his mind. 


	35. Fallon's Plight

The next morning, Ash was feeling refreshed and ready to get back on the road to Vermillion City. After a quick meditation session with Lucario, they went to the cafeteria to join Fallon and the others for breakfast. Since it was only seven in the morning, the cafe was mostly empty aside from Nurse Joy and a few other early risers. As he settled down at one of the tables with a plate of sausage and eggs and began to dig into his meal, Greninja and Lucario came to sit down beside him. Ash frowned, noticing the tired, sleep-deprived look on the frog-ninja Pokemon's face. 

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly. 

" _I'm alright, Ash. Don't worry about me,_ " Greninja said gently. 

Ash frowned. "But you look like you didn't sleep at all. What happened?" 

" _It was a long night, that's all,_ " the frog Pokemon answered. 

"Oh. Do you want to go back to sleep after breakfast?" Ash offered, tilting his head to the side. "We can stay for one more day. I don't mind waiting a little longer." 

Greninja ruffled his hair. " _Thank you, Ash, but I'll be alright. I can always take a nap later._ " 

Fallon shook her head. "Why is it that you're fine with sitting down and taking a break when everyone else is tired, but when we tell you to take care of yourself, it's impossible to get you to stop running around everywhere?" 

" _Believe me, Fallon, we ask ourselves the same thing every day,_ " Bulbasaur piped up from where he was munching on a Pokeblock. 

Ash rolled his eyes, reaching over to pet his grass-type's head. "Who needs parents when I've got all of you to fuss over me?" 

The others chuckled, and soon, the conversation at the table turned to more casual topics. Per Lucario and Greninja's instructions, Ash would be staying in the Pokemon Center until later that afternoon. Fallon was planning on having a quick training session with Staryu and Jolteon, so she offered to take the rest of his Pokemon out to join them. He agreed readily, not wanting to deprive his friends of an opportunity to train just because he was confined to his hospital room for a few more hours. 

"Make sure you all work hard, okay?" Ash instructed his Pokemon cheerfully. 

" _Okay!_ " Charmander piped up. 

" _We will!_ " Bulbasaur and Sylveon promised. 

" _Naturally,_ " Pidgeotto replied, doing what he assumed was the avian version of a bow. 

" _You got it, Ash,_ " Pikachu said, giving him a thumbs-up. 

He smiled and reached over to pet his friends, trying to ignore the pit of longing he could feel forming in his stomach. There was nothing he would have loved more than to be able to join them in their training session today. But Lucario and Greninja had been insistent, and Ash knew there would be no arguing against their wishes. Besides, it wouldn't be all that bad. It was only a few more hours, after all. He had made it this far, hadn't he? 

Of course, there was also the lingering question of why he had fainted in the first place, but Ash tried to push that to the back of his mind. It wasn't as though he had ever really gotten sick before unless he counted the occasional cold, but even those were few and far between. Maybe he had simply been more tired than he had realized and it had all caught up to him at once. 

Before he could ponder this much further, however, they were interrupted as Nurse Joy approached their table. "Excuse me, but is one of you Fallon Miller?" she asked politely. 

"That's me," Fallon spoke up, looking puzzled. "Is everything okay, Nurse Joy?" 

"Everything is fine, dear. I just came to let you know that I received a call from your parents," the pink-haired woman answered. 

"O-oh, really?" Fallon asked, trying to appear casual, although Ash could still see a hint of worry in her eyes. "What did they say?" 

"Not very much. They just wanted to let you know that they're hoping to check in on you soon. Your mother asked me to pass on a message to tell you to call them later," Nurse Joy informed her. 

"Ah, okay," the redhead sighed. "I, uh, I guess I'll call them later, then." 

But as she spoke the words, Ash couldn't help noticing that she refused to meet Nurse Joy's eyes. As soon as the kindly woman had left, Fallon let out a sigh, pushing her half-eaten plate of waffles away and slumping back in her seat. 

"Great," she groaned, burying her face in her hands. "Ash, do you think you could do me a favor? Find some berries that are poisonous to humans and make me a smoothie." 

"I, uh, I don't think I should do that..." Ash said nervously. 

Fallon sighed, allowing her forehead to drop onto the table. "Ugh. Well, I suppose it was inevitable anyway. Why _now_ , though? Why couldn't they have just waited a little longer...like a few years...or maybe just forever?" 

" _I'm sure you don't have anything to worry about, Fallon,_ " Lucario said soothingly. " _Your parents are good people, aren't they? I'm sure they'll understand when you explain what happened between you and Damian._ " 

"I don't know," she admitted, now staring down with her hands in her lap. "I mean, I know they've always been good to me, but this feels different somehow, you know? He was their son. What if they blame me because he got his license suspended and probably ruined his life?" 

" _That won't happen,_ " the Aura Pokemon comforted her. " _If your parents love you as much as you say, then they'll understand. You just need to talk to them._ " 

"Besides, Damian didn't have much of a life to ruin anyway," Ash piped up. 

She laughed a bit at that, some of the worry in her expression disappearing. "Yeah, he really didn't, did he?" 

"Nope!" he answered. Giving her a reassuring smile, he added, "And hey, don't worry! If you're really that scared about talking to your parents, I can come with you when you call them. You know, to offer-uh, what's the term again, Greninja?" 

" _Moral support?_ " the frog Pokemon suggested. 

"Moral support! Yeah, that's it," Ash agreed. 

"Really?" Fallon asked, blinking. "You don't mind?" 

"Mind? No way! I mean, it's not like I'll be doing anything else until this afternoon, right?" he pointed out. He grinned and added, "Besides, I'd do anything to help a friend." 

" _And I'll come too,_ " Charmander piped up. " _It would be great to get to talk to Christine and Daniel again._ " 

Fallon smiled slightly, obviously having gotten the gist of the little fire-type's words. "Alright, then. Thanks, Ash and Charmander." 

"Anytime," Ash replied, beaming back at his friend. 

Another fifteen minutes passed, and eventually, everyone was finished with their breakfast. After depositing their empty plates on the cart for the used dishes and silverware, Ash, Charmander, and Fallon headed over to one of the video phones while the others went back up to Ash's hospital room. Fortunately, it was still fairly early and the other patrons had already left the cafeteria, which meant Fallon would be able to speak to her parents in private. 

"So your parents' names are Daniel and Christine?" Ash asked, trying to make conversation as Fallon began punching in some numbers on the keypad. 

"Yeah. Did Charmander tell you?" she inquired, glancing over at him. 

"Sort of. He said that it would be good to talk to them again," he explained, and she nodded. "There were two kids in my class named Daniel and Kristine. But they were brother and sister, and everyone called them Dan and Kristi. Also, Kristi spelled her name with a 'K'." 

"Ah, yeah. My mom's name is spelled C-H-R-I-S-T-I-N-E," Fallon said, smiling as she punched in another number. She shook her head. "I have to question the names she picked for me and Damian sometimes. I mean, there they are with some of the most normal-sounding names ever, and then they go and name us Damian and Fallon. What's up with that? How come they couldn't have picked something like Colin and Erin instead?" 

"Fallon isn't that unusual," Ash pointed out. "And your name is really pretty too. Besides, I have kind of a weird name too. I was named after a bunch of gray dust that gets left behind after a fire. Also, it makes you cough a lot. Don't ever try to climb up the chimney in your house." 

She chuckled and shook her head, turning to punch the last number in on the keypad. But as she raised her finger, the smile on her face dropped abruptly. Ash watched as Fallon stared down at the keypad before letting her arm drop back down to her side, a look of utter defeat on her face. 

"Fallon?" he asked worriedly. "What's wrong?" 

" _Fallon?_ " Charmander said softly, reaching out toward his former trainer. 

"I...I can't do this," she whispered, staring down at her feet. "I can't talk to them. I can't face them." 

Ash didn't know what to say. Fallon's head was bowed and her shoulders slumped forward, her eyes downcast. She didn't just look defeated, she looked _hopeless_. As he watched, trying to think of something he could say or do to make her feel better, she turned around and slid down the wall, coming to sit on the floor with her head on her knees. 

"I'm sorry," Fallon whispered, and it seemed to Ash as though she were speaking both to him and to someone who wasn't even there, but he sat down next to her and placed an arm around her shoulders all the same. "I'm sorry you have to put up with me. I don't mean to be like this. I'm sorry." 


	36. Reaching Out

Fallon stared blankly ahead as Jolteon and Pikachu engaged in a practice battle, a glass of water clutched loosely in her hand. Although she was supposed to be assisting with the Pokemon in their training session, she could barely bring herself to pay attention to anything that was going on around her. The darkness that had temporarily dissipated after joining Ash's traveling group had suddenly returned in full force. She felt as though she were trapped under the weight of a thousand stones, able to see the light on the other side but not quite strong enough to free herself. 

_What's the matter with me?_

Why was she so weak? Here she was, free from her brother, free to finally have the journey she had always wanted, and yet she couldn't move on. She couldn't even bring herself to speak to her parents. Her parents, who had never been anything but kind and supportive of her, and she couldn't do something as simple as giving them a call when they were probably worried about her. What sort of a daughter was she? Maybe Damian had been onto something all those times he told her how worthless and pathetic she was. 

_No,_ Fallon thought firmly, tossing the thought aside immediately. Regardless of anything, she knew she hadn't done anything to deserve to be spoken to the way Damian had with her. His opinion of her was his problem and his problem alone. 

But still, why couldn't she summon up the courage to give her parents a call? 

Logically speaking, she knew she didn't have anything to worry about. Officer Jenny would have told her parents what had happened-or, well, at least what she had been led to believe happened. They had never blamed her for Damian's actions before, so Fallon knew that her concerns about them doing so now were entirely unfounded. Yet at the same time, she just couldn't rid herself of whatever it was that was keeping her from talking to them. 

What made it even worse was the fact that she knew Ash and his Pokemon were doing everything they could think of to help her, and yet she was still a complete disaster (to put it lightly). It just didn't make sense. She had the greatest support system she could have asked for. And she _wanted_ to get better. That was the thing. By all logic, moving on should have been a piece of cake. Yet somehow, for reasons she couldn't even begin to figure out, it just wasn't enough. 

" _Fallon?_ " 

"Hello, Lucario," Fallon murmured, not even bothering to look up. 

" _Are you alright?_ " the Aura Pokemon asked softly. " _You're looking a bit down._ " 

"I'm-" Fallon tried to say "fine", but almost instinctively, her eyes shifted over toward Lucario. When she saw the gentle concern in the deep red eyes, she found that she couldn't bring herself to lie to him. Instead, she shook her head and said bitterly, "I think I'm just completely, irreversibly screwed up." 

Lucario didn't say anything. He simply sat there silently, waiting for her to gather her thoughts enough to continue speaking. 

"I'm just...I don't know," she sighed, staring down at her feet again. "I'm just so tired of being miserable all the time, but I just can't seem to do anything about it. You've all done so much to try to help me. I don't know why it isn't working. I want to get better, but it's not enough and I don't know why. And I just wish I could be a better friend to all of you because I'm sure you must be sick and tired of having someone like me constantly dragging the mood down." 

" _Fallon. No,_ " Lucario said firmly, placing a paw on her knee. " _You are a good friend and we most certainly are not sick of you. It's not your fault that you aren't well right now._ " 

"I know," Fallon murmured. "I just wish things would get better for me." 

The sound of a window opening overhead made her look upward. Glancing in the direction it had come from, she saw Ash peering down at her from the balcony of his hospital room. Even from her vantage point, Fallon could see the concern in his gaze. She smiled as reassuringly as possible, not wanting to worry him even more than she already had that day, which fortunately seemed to do the trick. He hesitated briefly, then nodded and closed the window, disappearing back inside. 

"How's Ash doing?" Fallon asked Lucario, eager to get the conversation off of herself for a bit. 

" _He's frustrated with being shut up in his room, but he's alright. Actually, Ash was the one who told me to come to check on you,_ " Lucario admitted. 

Fallon wasn't surprised to hear that. No matter what, Ash always seemed to be more concerned with everyone else's health and happiness than his own. She really didn't know how he did it. How was it possible for him to care so much about others and not at all about himself? 

Alright, well, maybe it was a bit of a stretch to say that he didn't care at _all_ about himself, but it was definitely less so than she and everyone else would have liked. 

" _I think you should speak to someone,_ " Lucario said suddenly, bringing her back to reality. 

"Speak to someone?" she repeated, blinking. "What do you mean by that?" 

" _I mean I think you should speak to someone about how you've been feeling about...well, everything that's happened,_ " the jackal told her. 

"Like who?" Fallon asked dubiously. "I don't have any friends aside from you guys, and I can't talk to my parents about this. Who else do I have left?" 

" _I want you to start seeing a therapist,_ " Lucario clarified. 

"But if talking to my friends doesn't help, then how will talking to some random stranger be any better?" she pointed out skeptically. 

" _Therapists aren't just random strangers. They've been trained to help people cope with various mental health issues,_ " he explained. " _They can provide the help that the rest of us might not necessarily be able to._ " 

Fallon hesitated for a moment, unsure what to do. Lucario's suggestion certainly had its merits; that was undeniable. But what if it wasn't enough? She had already exhausted all of her other options. If this didn't work out, she didn't know what she would do then. 

At the same time, though, what other choice did she have? If there was even the slightest chance that it would help her, then she had to take it. Didn't she? She might not have known whether it would be the right decision in the long run, but she knew that she would hate herself forever if she let this opportunity slip by. 

"Alright," she agreed finally, exhaling slowly. "I'll do it." 


	37. Prepare For Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ash throughout this entire story: I have never done anything wrong ever. 
> 
> Greninja and Lucario: We know this and we love you.

As it turned out, there was just enough time left in the day for a walk-in appointment with a therapist just down the street from the Pokemon Center. After a quick late lunch, Fallon went over to the counselor's office along with her friends. Along the way, Ash and Lucario walked beside her, helping to calm her growing nervousness about her upcoming appointment. She felt a bit guilty about delaying their return to traveling even further, but nobody else seemed to mind much. 

"You're going to be fine," Ash told her, smiling brightly. "Whoever you talk to is going to be there for you just like we are. And they're going to know how to help you. But you have to let them help, okay?" 

" _He's right, you know,_ " Lucario spoke up. " _I know talking about everything to someone you haven't met yet can be frightening, but remember, your therapist isn't your enemy. And anything you discuss with them will be purely confidential. They just want to help you get better._ " 

Fallon nodded, glancing over at Ash. "Are you sure you don't want to get back on the road?" she asked tentatively. "I mean, I know we were supposed to head out again today, and now because of me we're going to have to wait until tomorrow morning..." 

However, Ash just laughed and waved her off. "Nah, don't worry about it. If it helps you, I don't mind waiting a little bit longer. Besides, Greninja and Lucario would probably keep me in bed for the rest of my life if they could." 

"Greninja gren, greninja," Greninja scoffed, though his voice betrayed the barest hint of amusement. 

"Pikapi, pika!" Pikachu added. 

The raven-haired trainer rolled his eyes. "Alright, so apparently _all_ of them would keep me in bed for the rest of my life if they could." 

Fallon chuckled lightly at that, but she couldn't deny the truth of Ash's statement. Nor could she deny the fact that his Pokemon had more than enough reason to be so overprotective. The mystery of what had caused him to pass out was still lingering at the back of everyone's minds. She had overheard Lucario talking to Ash about getting more tests done, but the messy-haired boy had adamantly refused, stating that he didn't want to spend even more time in the hospital. After some arguing, it had been agreed that they would let it go for now, but if the same thing happened again, Ash would go in for testing. 

Personally, she had a few theories about what was going on with her friend. But she wasn't a doctor, so she didn't say anything. 

"What are you going to do while I'm having my appointment?" she asked, deciding to break the silence. 

"Not much, really. Everyone's pretty tired from training, so we'll most likely just walk around town for a bit," Ash answered with a shrug. 

"Sounds like fun," Fallon remarked wistfully. 

"Yeah. Hey, what do you say we all go out for dinner later?" he suggested. "I overheard a few trainers talking about a ramen shop around here that's supposed to be good." 

"Sure thing," she agreed cheerfully. She wasn't about to turn down an offer of a bowl of ramen. 

" _I'll gather some berries for myself, but you all have fun,_ " Lucario said. " _Ah, here we are._ " 

Looking ahead, Fallon saw that they had stopped in front of a very plain-looking building. This, apparently, was the office where she would be speaking to her therapist. She wasn't entirely sure what she had expected, but it looked oddly...normal. Almost dull, as a matter of fact. Not that she had expected anything extravagant, but would it have done any harm to at least paint the walls a slightly brighter color? 

Then she shook her head. The colors of the building had nothing to do with why she was there. She could criticize their choice of decor all she wanted later, but for now, she had an appointment to make.

* * *

There wasn't much to see in the small town, but Ash was determined to make the most of the next hour and a half while they waited for Fallon's appointment to finish. Fortunately, if there was one thing he was good at, it was finding enjoyment in small things, and he was only too eager to explore after being trapped inside his hospital room. The raven-haired boy dragged Greninja and Lucario in every direction possible, trying to make enough time to visit every shop in town before it was time to meet up with Fallon again. 

" _Ash, slow down! The shops aren't going to go anywhere!_ " Greninja called after him. " _And we don't need you passing out again either!_ " 

"Oh, come on. I'm fine," Ash pouted, sticking his tongue out at the frog Pokemon. "Besides, there's so much to see! I want to explore before I have to go back to the Pokemon Center tonight." 

" _Explore what, exactly?_ " Lucario asked, looking amused. " _This is one of the smallest towns I've ever seen._ " 

He shrugged. "Yeah, but we've never been here before, have we? So there's still a lot for us to do." 

" _Fair enough,_ " the jackal conceded. 

Ash grinned triumphantly and was about to respond when a sudden cry of alarm caught their attention. Spinning around in the direction it had come from, he spotted a group of trainers near the Pokemon Center, all staring up at something in the sky. He followed their gazes to see a large, Meowth-shaped hot air balloon being piloted by a woman with pink hair, a man with long lavender hair, and a Meowth. But the sight that made Ash's blood boil, however, was the net attached to the base of the balloon containing three stolen Pokemon: a Flareon, an Exeggcute, and a Poliwag. 

"You thieves! Give us back our Pokemon!" a young boy shouted. 

"I want my Poliwag back!" a girl cried. 

"You won't get away with this!" another boy who appeared to be the girl's brother raged. 

However, the two thieves just chuckled cruelly. Doing what was perhaps the stupidest pose Ash had ever seen, the woman called out, "Prepare for trouble, is that-" 

Ash had no idea where the woman was planning on taking her impromptu recitation next, but he knew he wasn't going to stand around and find out. Snapping his head around, he ordered sharply, "Greninja, Night Slash on that net! Pikachu, deflate that balloon with Iron Tail! Lucario, get ready to catch those Pokemon when they fall out of the net." 

If Lucario was at all surprised about Ash giving him an order, he didn't show it. Almost too fast for him to see, Greninja and Pikachu rushed forward, leaping almost impossibly high into the air. Greninja's Night Slash sliced clean through the net, freeing the stolen Pokemon, all of whom were quickly saved from a fall to certain death by a well-timed Psychic from Lucario. Pikachu's Iron Tail punctured a large hole in the balloon. The three Pokemon thieves let out shrieks of rage but were powerless to do anything as they were sent back down to earth as well. 

"That was uncalled for!" the woman spat, climbing out of the ruined balloon. 

"We're here on an urgent mission from the boss!" the man protested. 

"Now you give us back those Pokemon, twerp!" Meowth hissed threateningly-or at least as threateningly as a cat less than half of Ash's size could manage. 

Ash didn't bother to be surprised that a Meowth could speak in human tongue (and, unlike Lucario, without using Telepathy). He was going to teach these Pokemon thieves a lesson they wouldn't forget anytime soon. Closing his eyes, he summoned up everything Lucario had taught him over the past three years and charged at the stunned group. Using his aura to channel his strength into his fist, he delivered a blow to the man's stomach that sent him crashing to the ground. The woman snarled and moved to strike him in retaliation, but an Aura Sphere from Lucario quickly put her out of commission. Finally, Greninja finished off Meowth with an Ice Beam as Ash knocked the man unconscious for good measure. 

Dusting himself off, Ash turned around to see the three rescued Pokemon and their trainers staring at him in undisguised awe. He chuckled lightly and waved at them as he went back over to Lucario and Greninja, who ruffled his hair fondly. 

" _That was excellent, Ash,_ " Lucario said, pride lacing his voice. 

"Thanks, Lucario," Ash replied, beaming. "You guys were all really awesome too. I think we taught those idiots a lesson, didn't we?" 

" _That we did,_ " Pikachu agreed, grinning triumphantly. 

He chuckled and walked over to the three trainers, all of whom were still looking at him with the same expression of amazement in their eyes. "Are all of your Pokemon okay? I have medicine for them if any of them are hurt." 

"N-no, they're okay," the girl spoke up, stammering ever so slightly. Then she rushed forward and hugged him. "Thank you so much. I don't know how we can ever repay you. If you hadn't come along when you did, who knows what would have happened to our Pokemon?" 

"We really owe you one," the first boy agreed. 

"No problem. I'm just glad they're all okay," Ash reassured them, tactfully freeing himself from the girl's embrace. "What are your names?" 

"I'm Lianna, and this is my brother, Darryl," the girl said, indicating herself and the second boy. 

"My name's Brendan. I'm a friend of Lianna and Darryl," the first boy introduced himself. 

"Nice to meet all of you! I'm Ash, and these are my friends, Greninja, Pikachu, and Lucario," Ash said cheerfully, gesturing to his Pokemon partners, who had joined him at his side. 

" _Pleasure,_ " Lucario said politely, nodding to the three trainers. 

Predictably enough, their eyes bugged out of their heads. "You-you can talk?" Darryl exclaimed. 

" _I can, yes. I learned how to use Telepathy after years of training,_ " Lucario explained. Ash noticed that his voice bore none of his usual irritation at the typical shock he received over his ability to speak in human language. Perhaps he thought that Darryl, Lianna, and Brendan had already been through enough without being snapped at as well. 

"Do you know who they are?" Ash asked, jerking his head in the direction of the still-unconscious thieves. 

They all shook their heads. "No idea," Lianna answered. "We were just on our way to the Pokemon Center to check into our rooms when they came out of nowhere in that giant balloon. But we've never seen them before in our lives." 

"But we did notice that the two humans were both wearing crop top shirts with the letter 'R' on them," Darryl added. 

Ash nodded, having seen the same thing. He also recalled the Meowth mentioning something about a boss. It didn't take a genius to realize that they were obviously working for someone, but whether it was a ring of petty Pokemon thieves or something far greater remained to be seen. 

Well, whoever they were, Officer Jenny could deal with them. As if on cue, right at that moment, the blue-haired police officer pulled up on a motorbike, screeching to a halt beside the ill-fated group. 

"I just received a call about a group of Pokemon thieves in the area. Are these them?" Officer Jenny asked, gesturing to the unconscious humans and Meowth. 

"They are," Ash confirmed. 

"They were about to steal our Pokemon in that balloon over there," Lianna said, nodding over to the destroyed hot air balloon. "But Ash and his Pokemon saved them." 

"Is that so?" Officer Jenny asked, giving the boy a look of approval. "In that case, my thanks are with you. I came as fast as I could from Vermillion City, but it looks as if you're the true hero for today." 

"Thanks," Ash said, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "But it's really Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu who did all the work. All I did was knock out the guy with the weird lavender hair." 

"Then I must thank all of you as well," the blue-haired officer replied, nodding respectfully to the aforementioned Pokemon, all of whom waved in acknowledgment. To Darryl, Lianna, and Brendan, she added, "You can rest assured that these criminals will be spending quite a bit of time behind bars." 

"Thank you, Officer Jenny. That's a relief to hear," Brendan said sincerely. 

"Now nobody else will have their Pokemon snatched up like ours were," Lianna added. 

Officer Jenny smiled briefly before attaching the three thieves to the back of her motorbike and speeding off, leaving a cloud of dust in her wake. Ash watched her go, grinning inwardly to himself. He was going to have quite the story to tell Fallon later when they met up again after her appointment. 

Speaking of which...

"Hey, what time is it? Fallon should be about finished by now, right?" he asked, turning to Lucario. 

" _I think so, yes,_ " the Aura Pokemon confirmed, glancing up at the sky. " _We should start heading back just in case._ " 

They bade a quick farewell to the three trainers, all of whom thanked them one last time. As Ash walked beside Lucario and Greninja, enjoying the feel of the gentle breeze on his face, he was able to push the incident with the Pokemon thieves to the back of his mind. Now that Officer Jenny had them in her hands, they wouldn't be a threat to anyone anytime soon. 

" _I wonder how long they'll be in jail for,_ " Pikachu remarked suddenly. 

" _Don't know, but I hope it's for a long time. Thieves like them deserve nothing but the worst,_ " Greninja replied, an unusually savage look in his eyes. 

"You can say that again," Ash agreed fervently. His Pokemon were like family to him. The mere thought of anyone stealing them from him made his blood boil. 

" _They're nothing but a bunch of low-life criminals who like to destroy everything they touch. I'd be willing to bet they were going to sell those poor Pokemon for a profit,_ " Lucario spoke up, his voice edged with anger. " _And that Meowth is a traitor to all Pokemon for helping them._ Any _Pokemon who would willingly work alongside humans aiming to cause harm to Pokemon or other humans is a traitor._ " 

"I wonder why he's with them?" Ash wondered aloud. "I mean, what would he even gain by helping a couple of Pokemon thieves? They're not even good at their job if they're trying to steal Pokemon in broad daylight, and I don't think they're doing anything for him." 

" _Who knows? Why do Pokemon thieves do anything?_ " Greninja asked, shrugging. 

"True," he agreed. Then he brightened. "Hey, Lucario? I just remembered something." 

" _Yes, Ash? What is it?_ " the jackal asked curiously. 

"We met another Pokemon today that can speak human like you! And he's not a psychic-type or a legendary either!" Ash told his mentor cheerfully. "Which means that you're not the weird one in the group anymore!" 

Lucario's response was to bop him playfully on the nose. 


	38. A Question of Forgiveness

While Ash and his Pokemon were dealing with the Pokemon thieves, Fallon found herself sitting in a cozy office across from a kind-looking woman, leaning back against the soft couch cushions. She rested her head on her arm, staring out the window as she tried to formulate a response to the question she had been asked not even five minutes ago. Yet no matter how hard she racked her brains, she couldn't think of anything to say. 

All in all, her first session so far had gone well. She hadn't been expected to unload all of her troubles at once as she had feared. Her therapist, Marci Summers, had started off simple, asking her basic questions about herself such as her name and random interests such as her favorite color, her favorite book, and her favorite movies. By the time they had moved onto Fallon's family life, she had felt comfortable enough with Marci to explain the dynamics between herself, her parents, and her brother. 

"My mom and dad are great. They've always been super nice to me and did their best to make sure I had everything I needed," Fallon had told her. 

Marci had nodded, making a note on her clipboard. "And what about your brother, Damian?" 

"Oh, him?" she had asked, grimacing. "He's...awful, to put it lightly. He treats everyone as if they're nothing, especially me. Our interactions mostly consist of him telling me how much he hates me or how worthless he thinks I am, and that's on a good day. And he's pure evil. Did you know he had his license suspended recently because he tried to kill one of my old Pokemon?" 

"No, I didn't know that," Marci had said, her eyes widening ever so slightly. "Would you like to tell me more about that?" 

And so Fallon had told her everything. She had told Marci about Damian's hatred for Charmander, his belief that the fire-type was weak, and that she was wasting her time trying to train him. How he had constantly told her that she needed a stronger fire-type. She told her about how everything had come to a head on that fateful evening when, after she had fallen ill while walking to the next Pokemon Center, Damian had taken advantage of her situation to leave Charmander to die in an oncoming storm. 

"If my friends hadn't come along when they did, Charmander wouldn't be alive today," she had stated. 

"And how did that make you feel when you found out what Damian had done?" Marci had asked. 

Fallon had blinked in confusion. What sort of a question was that. "Well, furious, of course. _Livid_. I mean, he tried to kill my Pokemon. How else was I supposed to feel about it?" 

"Were you just angry?" the older woman had pressed. "No other emotions that you can think of?" 

She had thought for a few moments, trying to remember and make sense of the tangled mess her heart and mind had been in that night. "I mean...I guess I kind of felt shocked in a way. I knew Damian didn't like Charmander, but I'd never really thought that he would go as far as to try to kill him." 

"So would you say you felt betrayed?" Marci had prompted. 

"I guess? I mean, I don't know if 'betrayed' really fits in this situation," Fallon had replied with a shrug. "I always knew Damian was a horrid, awful person, it was just that I always thought murder would be too far even for him. But sometimes, part of me feels like I should have seen it coming." 

She had sighed, leaning forward with her hands clasped together in her lap. "That's...that's why I chose to give up Charmander, actually. He wasn't safe with me. Even after Damian was arrested, I still felt like I had to give him up. He's training with Ash-he's one of my best friends-and so far, everything's going well. I've been traveling with Ash ever since...well, ever since everything happened." 

"I see," Marci had murmured. "And how has it been, seeing Charmander training under Ash? I can tell by the way you talk about him that you two must have been close." 

"I do miss him a lot," Fallon had admitted. "But I know I did the right thing. He's safe and happy with Ash, and anyway, it's not as if I'll never see him again. As long as he's okay, then that's all I really care about. I'm happy as long as he's safe and happy." 

"But, well...that's why I'm here today, honestly," she had confessed, relieved to finally be getting to the heart of the matter. "Because I'm _not_ happy. I still can't stop thinking about what Damian did. It's easy enough to handle during the day, at least most of the time, because at least then, I have other things to distract me. But when I'm alone, when it's nighttime out..."

Fallon had trailed off, momentarily lost in thought as she recalled all the nights she had spent staring up at the sky (or, in some cases, the ceiling of her room in the Pokemon Center), feeling her insides burn with rage at the memory of her brother's attempt on Charmander's life. The feeling grew so intense at times that she found herself looking down at her body, convinced that she must have been on fire. It was almost unbearable, an all-encompassing agony that threatened to eat away at her very _soul_ until she felt as though she would either scream for help that she felt would never come or die in its hellish grasp. Yet somehow, she just couldn't let go of it, couldn't move away. 

"I just can't let go of it," she had admitted finally, feeling a strange mixture of shame and relief at getting it out in the open. "And I want to. So badly. I don't think I could ever explain how badly I just want to be able to move on with my life. But I can't, and I just don't know why. I mean...I have everything I could ever ask for. My friends have all been wonderful to me, better than I probably deserve considering how much I must drag the mood down. _They_ want me to get better. _I_ want to get better. But it's just not happening, and it doesn't make any sense. And I need to know because I hate that I'm still letting my brother have this much power over me, and I just...I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with me, and I don't know how I'll even begin to try to fix it." 

After that, she had paused for a few minutes, trying to catch her breath. Part of her had felt embarrassed about unloading all of her demons onto a woman she hadn't even known for an hour yet, but another part of her, the part that she was desperately clinging onto, felt at peace. Maybe she had come on a bit strong, but it had felt good to finally get at least some of what had been plaguing her mind off her shoulders. 

But then Marci had asked the question that had brought her to the position she was in now. "Do you think that you would feel better if you tried to forgive your brother?" 

At first, she had been incredulous. "Forgive? Why should I forgive him? He tried to kill my Pokemon!" she had snapped. "He's a monster! And you want me to just go up to him and say, hey, it's all good? That's it? He tries to kill my Pokemon, my _friend_ , and...what? I start inviting him over for cookies?" 

"Forgiveness doesn't mean you have to reestablish a relationship, Fallon," Marci had said gently. "It just means letting go of your rage toward him." 

"But isn't that the same thing as letting him off the hook?" she had asked in confusion. 

"Not necessarily," the older woman had explained. "Think about it like this. Imagine that there's a rope that's been lit on fire. This rope represents the pain your brother has caused you. One end is tied around his neck, and you're holding the other end in your hands. Right now, you're both getting burned. But if you let go of the rope, he'll still be getting burned, but you won't be suffering anymore. Your hands will have scars that will take time to heal, but you'll finally be able to begin the healing process for real. That's what forgiveness is, Fallon. It doesn't mean absolving Damian of his crimes. It means letting go of your anger so that it doesn't cause _you_ pain anymore." 

Now, Fallon found herself staring out the window, mulling over Marci's words in her head. The analogy made sense, at least from a logical standpoint. She could certainly see why letting go of the rope would feel liberating. But at the same time, she just didn't know how to. Even though Marci had reassured her that it wasn't so, she couldn't help feeling that if she let go of her end, Damian would somehow be able to free himself from _his_ end. 

But at the same time..what good was it doing? She wanted Damian to suffer the same anguish she had, first over nearly losing Charmander, then over believing she had accidentally murdered her brother, and finally over having to give up the little fire-type for his own safety. That was the problem, though. Damian wasn't capable of caring for anyone besides himself. He would never know the pain of having to lose a loved one because he didn't know how to feel love. The burning rope wasn't affecting him because he didn't have the emotional capacity to feel any semblance of guilt for his actions. She might as well have lit herself on fire and allowed him to pour gasoline over her for all her rage toward him was doing for her. 

One thing Fallon knew for sure, though, was that she was tired of burning herself. She was done with being in pain all the time. There was no telling if her scars would ever fully heal, but she had to at least try. 

"How do I do it?" she asked finally. "How do I let go of the rope?" 

"You don't have to do much. Just close your eyes and take a deep breath," Marci instructed gently. "And once you do that, I want you to repeat the phrase 'I forgive you.' As many times as you need." 

Fallon nodded, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "I forgive you," she whispered. 

"I forgive you." 

"I forgive you." 

"I forgive you." 

As the minutes ticked by, she repeated the phrase word for word, never moving from her position on the couch. Slowly but surely, as Fallon continued her mantra, she felt the fury that had been scorching away at her insides melt away into a calm oasis of peace. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fallon's doing better! Yay!
> 
> This isn't the last time she'll be in therapy. She still has demons that she needs to work through. But this was her first step on the road to recovery.


End file.
